Slavery: The Game

"OH HEEEEELLLL NO! DIS SH*T BET NOT BE REAL!! SOMEBODY NEED DEY A$$ BEAT!!"

I just knew that was going to happen... I'm not entirely sure where this came from or what sparked this, but I DO know that this is fake. Some clever mind knew that this would evoke extreme anger in people of a certain color because we just got over slavery and it is WAY too soon to be making jokes about it.

...plus there's the fact that there's no such thing as "Javelin Reds Games".

But seriously, we gotta go back to the selective judgment thing. I know that this is offensive. I surely acknowledge that fact. But you all are willing to go ape sh*t over this historical accuracy--where people were physically abused and malnourished while others made a profit off of their labor. Meanwhile, there are other games out that not only brutally kill children, women, and the elderly, but that degrade women horribly...

But it's whatever. Y'all pick your favorites...

To Hell With Them!!!

Recently, the University of South Alabama (my school) has started a "green" project with the release of JagBikes. The JagBikes are set out in newly built bike racks around campus for students to use to get to class. As of now, it is simply an alternative to using the JagTran system.

When I first heard about the idea, I was super excited. I had a love/hate relationship with the JagTran system, and I wanted a faster way to get to class. Plus, I hadn't ridden a bike in a while.

Now that this project is implemented, IT CAN GO TO HELL! I mean really, it can go straight to purgatory. There are WAY more cons than pros to this. Hopefully all will be corrected by next week, but for now I'll just name off a few of the things that seriously made me wanna kick people in the face:

For one, there's the fact that TOO MANY PEOPLE DON'T KNOW why the bikes are out. I heard so many people ask "Hey, what's up with these bikes?" The speculations are even worse. "I heard you had to rent these bikes to use them, but people just get on them and ride them." (<---I can take advantage of people like that.) The answer is everywhere, people... it's in the Vanguard (the student newspaper for those who don't know-- "*gasp!* We have a school newspaper?!")... there's practically a BILLBOARD on the school website!! I promise, you won't burst into flames if you just READ!!! You're gonna spend 4 years doing it here anyway...

South was supposed to have 500 bikes made. I'm not entirely sure how many have been put out at the moment. But I AM pretty sure that half of them are now out of commission. Handle bars are sliding, pedals are left all over campus... just so many issues in a matter of 2 days. I'm told that the 500 bikes were made in 4 weeks at the most, so the issues may be a result of rushed assembly. But with the way these reckless college students handle them, I honestly doubt that's the case.

As indicated above, I am well aware that these bikes have issues. Is that any reason to abandon them in the middle of the sidewalk? NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!! Not only is that extremely dangerous for other bikers, it shows how incredibly lazy you are. I know bikes don't care where you are when they break down, but at least be considerate of the other people that use the sidewalk. And to the people who leave perfectly good bikes anywhere they feel like it, TO HELL WITH YOU TOO!!

I also have a place in my burn book for the people who hop on a JagBike who don't really have the skill to ride a bike. Traffic is already dangerous as it is. We don't need you making it worse. Stick to the JagTran.

And I'm tired of the people complaining about the people not using the bikes to go to class. STFU!!! Do you always use your car to go to class?? Do you always use the JAGTRAN to go to class?? NO! take the stick out of your ass and CTFD.

I don't see a very bright future for these bikes. They can take them away for all I care. I've gone most of my life without a bike anyway *shrugs*.

"You Know Where That Came From, Right?" -_-

You know what I'm tired of hearing about? Planking and its origins.

"Y'all are stupid for participating in this because it came from slavery. That's how slave masters used to store slaves on the slave ships..."

The operative words here are USED TO. When was the last time you've been stacked on a slave ship?

Exactly.

It's nice that you're educated, knowing your history and all, but planking is just a dumb game meant for entertainment. Being angry about it probably won't change it anytime soon. If you don't believe me, let's look at the origins of some other things we haven't stopped doing yet:

SAGGING
Most of us know that sagging was derived from prisons, where belts are prohibited. And I personally haven't heard anyone say "I used to sag, but I stopped when I found out where it came from." Hip hop has made it cool, and those who are highly impressionable are sure to follow suit. People who have never even BEEN to prison before are steadily testing the limits with sagging by wearing them around their thighs, knees, and ankles. The only thing that can ALMOST stop this: da law.

Here's an even better example:

HOLIDAY PARTYING
The first thing people wanna do on a holiday is get full and "wasted", which usually leads to fighting and such.

"You know where that came from, right?"

According to Frederick Douglass in his life narrative, slaveholders generally encouraged slaves to get drunk and fight on holidays as a way to keep them enslaved. It was a way to put in their minds "If we can live this good as slaves, we don't really need to be free."

And no one's upset about this?? Such selective judgment!

 

"I Just Wanna Be Friends" REALLY Means...

Not to sound conceited or anything, but I get approached by bunches of men who just "wanna be friends" or just "wanna get to know me better"... Then after having a conversation with them, it's clear(er) to me what they're after. So why not just cut the bull??

Today has to be the most memorable case of said type of man. I was getting on the bus (where my wildest antics occur), and passed by a guy who started staring at me (and by the way, he had gold front teeth with designs on them... I seriously thought those were out of style...). As I passed by, he asked if I could stop and talk to him. I declined--my philosophy is that I shouldn't have to stop for YOU to give YOU what YOU want. YOU should be doing all the work. If a man ever says "Come here!" or shouts to a woman from afar, then the person is SOOO not worth the time... but I digress.

I sat in my usual seat on the bus, and he came and sat behind me. He gave the usual spiel:

I just wanna be friends...
-Go be friends with that guy...

you need to get to know me...
-I NEED to??

I'm really a nice guy...
-I'm sure you are, but...

you cute...
-I know. I hear that all the time...

I could use a friend like you...
-bladdy bladdy blah... 

I'm sitting there, nodding my head, smiling to be polite and whatnot. Then he asked me my info:

"I'm Kacie. I'm 18 [<--shoulda said 17, but it doesn't matter since he thought I was FREAKIN 23!!! >_<]. I'm from West Mobile. Went to Davidson. I HAVE A BOYFRIEND! [I'll let you all figure out the truth.]"

I usually don't have to say much more about myself. I may lie about my interests and some other stuff, but that's about it. I'll let him do all the talking. And this guy did just that...

This guy (who, remember, JUST WANTS TO BE MY FRIEND), proceeded to tell me that a girl in school really turns him on. He wants a girl that's doing something with her life.... WOW... contradictions are so fun!! Here's some more:

"I know you told me you had a boyfriend. I'm not tryna break up yo lil happy home or whatever, but I just wanna take you out on a date to the movies or somethin. I'll treat you real good. I'll do more for you than he will... I don't know what he do for you, but I bet I can do more. I'll buy you a car. I'll take you to get yo nails done... you can put some lil designs on em, you'll look good in em foreal.

*awkward pause*

I ain't runnin game on you or nothin. I'm not that typa dude. But you got a real cute smile. You don't look yo age at all. You so sexy. You don't know what I'll do to you. I'll give you a real good massage, all over... I'll put you to sleep. *pause* You look like a good girl. *pause* You ever had alcohol before? [<---foo, didn't I just tell you I was 18????]

*pause*

You so sexy, foreal though. Where you get yo shape from: yo mama, or yo gramma? You so thick. You eat a lot of chicken? That's what it is, that's where you get yo shape from. *pause* Am I scarin you, talkin like this? [Nah bruh, I'm just hopin we don't have the same stop...]

*pause*

Yeah, but I'm a good dude doe... OH! Did I tell you I was in jail? Yeah I was down for bout a year. Cops caught me wit too much dope [like any small amount of it is legal here...] Then they busted me again for violatin my probation. But I'm tryna get right. I really am a good dude.

*turns to talk to the guy behind him*

Yeah, bruh... n*ggas dyin everyday. That's why I keep this lil .22 on me at all times *flashes gun*. If a n*gga take my life, imma take his [<--- he seriously said that!!]"

My stop finally came after an eternity. He saw me about to get off and asked me for my number. Routinely, I responded "If I see you again, I'll think about it." Then he tried to ramble off his number real quick before I got off. I told him I wasn't gonna remember it.

This is the kind of stuff I hear regularly. If I didn't have a boyfriend (whom I love very much) NONE of these dudes would have a chance. Even if we were really only going to be friends...

Don't Hurt Yourself Jumping to Conclusions...

Twitter has truly convinced me that people don't read enough.

...now that I think about it, it makes it pretty pointless for me to even make this post. But I didn't feel like making a video, so you get what you get. Anyway...

Currently there is a trending topic called #RIPNickiMinaj. I admit, it looks pretty bad at first glance. But naturally, I wanna see what all the fuss is about. So I'm looking through all of the tweets, and a lot of them say

"Death isn't funny."

"You shouldn't joke about ppl's death."

"Whoever started this rumor has no life."

"The only reason this is trending is because ppl are asking why this is trending."

I'm behind my computer screen, agreeing in silence until I get to a few other tweets that say

"Nicki Minaj isn't dead. RIP = Really Inspirational Person."

The explanations were enough to satisfy me an hour ago when I first looked at them. But yet and still, there are people adamant about how rude and thoughtless the trending topic is.

You would think that others would do what I did and try to figure out why the topic was trending. But clearly, people have other things to do with their time, including jumping to conclusions (I hear it's the only exercise some people get...).

And it still amazes me that people don't use the resources they have: SmartPhones, Google... it's all taken for granted. People don't deserve it...

As for the status of Ms. Nicki, I read that she out having the time of her life in Vegas, and getting ready for the BET Awards... tonight!

Mind Games

I recently came across my old Creative Writing notebook from my senior year of high school. Sometimes I surprise myself with the things I write... and this particular story I'm about to share is pretty good...

A huge thunderstorm was expected for today. I hear the thunder approaching. I saw the lightning flash. I heard the rain drops fall faster and faster. I ran to the nearest window. I loved to watch the rain fall. Through the rain, I could see people and cats running for shelter.

Off in the distance, I see two figures. They come into view and I see they are a man and a woman. They both seemed upset. The man had stormed out of the house, occasionally looking back and shouting. The woman charges after him and begins pulling his arm, as if to get him back inside. The man snatches away from her, and she falls to the muddy ground. I am instantly intrigued. The man starts towards his car. The woman gets up and runs to him. As he is reaching into his car, the woman jumps onto his back. He throws her off and she falls onto the concrete.

I watch in shock as the man points a gun to the woman on the ground. He pulls the trigger. the woman goes limp. The heavy rain washes her blood into the storm drain. The man slowly brings the gun to his side, as he looks around suspiciously. His head turns from left to right until his eyes met mine. My eyes widen and tears begin to fall. he walks quickly in my direction. I panic. Suddenly, lightening strikes. Both he and the woman are gone, as if they were never there...

Open Your Eyes

So from what I'm hearing so far today, a guy by the name of Dexter Issac may have had something to do with the death of rapper Tupac Shakur.

But I heard this on Twitter, which is no longer a reliable news source for me, so I looked it up.

I found out that yes: Dexter Issac did shoot Tupac Shakur.

In 1994.

Tupac was killed in 1996.

All the while, people are raising their blood  pressure over this... "That n***a better hide!" "I don't know what he was thinking revealing himself like that.."

Get a freakin grip. He didn't kill him. Granted, Issac's actions may have EVENTUALLY got him killed, but he didn't pull the fatal trigger. All these people who claim to be fans of him should be ashamed of themselves for believing that.

Also from what I'm hearing, this Dexter guy caused the death of Biggie Smalls, which sparked the enormous East Coast/West Coast beef.

Once again, I offer this advice: get a grip.

I don't know who all was apart of the beef. But if it was just plain ole ordinary people, I ask this question: what the CRAP does this have to do with you?

Is it cool to just sit around idolizing rappers and hate people who did absolutely nothing to you? I don't understand.

Anyway, props to that Dexter guy (that is, if he's telling the truth...). He said he confessed to bring closure to both the rappers' mothers. Better late than never.

#GhettoWordTranslation

Picture this: you're listening to the latest urban music, or watching a classic "hood" movie, when all of a sudden you hear a word or phrase you've never heard before. You're too embarrassed or confused to ask "What did he say?" or "Should I be offended?" What ever shall you do????

Don't you fret! Because the people of Twitter have given you the #GhettoWordTranslation!!

Thanks to comedian, spoken word artist, and motivator @SpokenReasons, Twitter users have come together to give you this amazing tool. From basic words to the most complicated phrases, you'll NEVER be left out of the loop again!! The following are some examples:

"isusomekin"
"are you related to me?"

"Ain't Nonadees"
"None Of These Are"

"imfinsto"
"I'm about to"

"whatchu got on my fowty?"
"Did you purchase me an alcoholic beverage from the corner store?"

"I'll lee you stankin"
"I will murder you and, presumably, leave your body to decompose."

"You aint bout dat life"
"You dont have what it takes to do something vulgar or out of the norm of what others expect of you."

Now be honest. How much clarity do you have after reading these words and phrases? These are only a few of the understandings you will gain from #GhettoWordTranslation. But don't take MY word for it:

"These #ghettowordtranslations are helping really helpful to a white fella like myself!" --@bryanlionparker

 #GhettoWordTranslation is completely free. But you've got to act fast. It's only around for a limited time...

Are YOU bout that life?

Dear Athletes. . .

Football players. Basketball players. Baseball players. Etc. I try not to stereotype, but you all know what they say about them: big, tall, loud, rude, inconsiderate, lazy with their studies, blah blah blah....

I used to be the one giving them all chances... "No, they're not all like that... get to know them. I'm sure they have great personalities."

The few that I've come across lately have met every single got dang stereotype I've listed. Last semester, there was a basketball player in my History class who simply refused to come to class on time. I never saw him take any notes, AND he skipped a test day to go hang out in the cafeteria. He irked my soul! Seriously.

Now me, I'm fairly small (5'3") so it's easy for me to get lost among a big crowd of athletes. When it comes to waiting for something I need, like FOOD, I don't play. I typically try to make myself known. I'll speak up, inch forward, stuff like that. I don't think there's anything wrong with letting someone know "Hey, I was here first".

JUST BECAUSE YOU ARE AN ATHLETE DOES NOT MEAN YOU ARE ENTITLED TO CUT IN FRONT OF EVERYONE WHO WAS QUICK ENOUGH TO GET IN LINE FIRST. AND IF THESE PEOPLE ARE SMART ENOUGH TO SPEAK UP FOR THEMSELVES, DON'T CATCH AN ATTITUDE  BECAUSE THEY TOLD THE TRUTH. YOU ARE IN THE WRONG.

DEAR ATHLETES,


 YOU CAN RUN, JUMP, THROW, CATCH, BUT THAT DOESN'T MAKE YOU ANY LESS HUMAN THAN THE REST OF US. YOU ARE NOT THE GODS OF THE CAMPUS. SHOW SOME RESPECT!!!!!!! 

I Guess You Thought That Was Okay...

Like most people, I've seen so many instances with lack of consideration, it's ridiculous. There seems to be a surplus of these instances around me. I'll share them in no particular order.

I've been doing work study in the English department of my university since January (well, technically longer than that). Countless students have come in looking for professors's offices. Courtesy says you're supposed to stop at the front desk and ask if the professor is in, or if s/he is busy. Many of the students just saunter in like they own the place. Then when they can't find their professor, the students come back to the front desk and ask when s/he will be available. And I'm reluctant to give them the info because THEY SHOULD HAVE ASKED IN THE FIRST PLACE!

Dear students: What if the professor was in the middle of something super important when you just waltzed in? How do you think s/he would feel about that? How would YOU feel if someone just barged in on YOU? I know you hate it when your parents do it, so why would you do it to someone else?? See? People don't think.

If you make an appointment to speak with someone, it would definitely make sense to be on time for said appointment. Better yet, you should be EARLY, especially if you know for a fact that this person will be seeing a large number of people that day. A young woman came to the office to see her professor. But you wouldn't know that from her behavior. She stood outside the office door and had a rather loud conversation with someone while students inside the office were either finishing appointments with the professor, or waiting patiently for their turn. Finally, after about a half an hour, she walks in to see her professor, who was still with a student at the time.
"Is he behind on his meetings or something?" she asked.
"...No," responded the secretary. "What time was your appointment?"
"3:00." (NOTE: at the time, the clock read 3:05)

I'm hoping you all see the issue here.

Conversely, if you had a meeting with someone that day, and you show up HOURS early, don't expect the person to be there when you are. You can't expect everyone to work with YOUR schedule. You can't get mad because they have other things to do when you show up.

Most of you who know me know I have this thing about smoking. I would never do it, but as they say, "To each, his own". But for the love of higher powers, there are freaking RULES for smoking! You oughta just know you can't smoke everywhere. If there's a sign that says "No Smoking Within 25 Feet", take it at face freaking value! NO, that does not mean "15 feet away if no one's looking", nor will it ever mean "lean on the building so you can look cool". It means "take advantage of this special area we created for smokers like you, 25 FEET AWAY FROM THIS BUILDING."

For smokers who enjoy a ciggy while walking: if there are other people walking, don't blow smoke IN THEIR DIRECTION! It may come as a surprise, but people take great pains to NOT smell bad everyday. Then you come along and ruin it with your puff of deadly vapors, it's just not cool.

Another thing I have failed to understand about smokers is why the choose to smoke in large crowds. Wanna hear some more shocking news? EVERYONE DOES NOT SMOKE! I have even witnessed smokers light up with literally dozens of children hanging around. When exactly did that get to be okay??

Please Help Me Understand...

At the risk of appearing close-minded, let me ask this question: why do people NEED alcohol to be more social?

No, you know what? Nevermind. Don't answer that. Because nothing anyone says can make me understand.

I just can't fathom why someone with an awesome personality would want to damage brain cells so they can look like an idiot in front of a bunch of other idiots. If you're social enough without the junk, you don't need a boost. And if your associates think you need a boost, perhaps you should find other people to associate with-- ones who appreciate you without alcohol.

I just had to get that off my chest.

What Do You Want??!

In a random act of boredom, I typed in a professor's name on RateMyProfessors.com. The professor's average quality overall was a 2.9 (out of 5, I'm assuming). After looking through all of the posts (having to force myself to take them seriously because most of them had significant spelling errors), I found varying reasons for this rating. Some said the professor was late often, some said tests weren't returned on time, and others said that they were made to feel inferior to this professor. But the consensus for the low rating was that the professor "always asked questions and never taught us anything".

I don't know if it was the EDM class I took previously, where the concept of self-teaching was engraved in my brain, but I'm pretty sure that asking questions is a form of teaching. Asking questions-- asking the RIGHT questions-- can eventually lead a person to the answer they're looking for.

I'm guessing what the students want from the professor is an easy "A"-- the professor should just read to them and tell them what the answers are, not allowing them to think for themselves and form their own opinion (and it's kind of apparent that they don't have an opinion of their own considering their complaints are the same...). If that's the case, then here is what I want to know from the students: why are you in college? You had to expect that you'd be researching and using your own thought process to figure out stuff for yourself. Yeah, it's tedious at times, but that's what you're here for, right? That's what you're working towards in your future, right? I mean, if it was that easy, to get answers to everything we wanted to know, we wouldn't need to waste our time and money in this place, right? [Sorry, no answers will be provided for the previous questions.]

The point I'm trying to make is FIGURE STUFF OUT ON YOUR OWN! I guess it's a pet peeve of mine, but it bothers me, especially in the world of the Internet and Smart phones, that people insist on having everything handed to them. Unless the person giving you the information has some special resources you don't have access to, you are perfectly able to find out what YOU need to know.

I Remember

I remember the ignorance.
-Ignorance is bliss, as they say.

I remember the comments.
-"I'm sorry to her about what happened."
"Do you know if he's okay or not?"

I remember the confusion.
-"What? What are you talking about? What happened?

I remember the shock.
-"...you didn't know your boyfriend was shot last night?"

I remember the frenzy.
-"WHAT!! Don't play like that! What happened?! Where was he?! Who shot him?!"
-I text. no reply. I call. No answer.

I remember the worry.

I remember the tears.

I remember the frustration.
the anger.
the hate.
the heartache.

I remember that phone call.
-"I know I'm not there to comfort my queen. I should be there for you to ease your pain. I should be there to hold you and wipe your tears. Just know that I love you and that everything's gonna be okay."

I remember the relief.
the calm.

I remember the belief.
-Everything's gonna be okay.

Let's Talk About Sex

Let's talk about sex.

We could look at it 2 ways:

1.) Take a technical look: Biology says that sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits... blah blah blah. Most people choose to recognize sex as the act in which the penis enters the vagina. Intercourse may also include non-penetrative sex (such as oral sex or mutual masturbation).

2.) Here's what sex means to people: for some, it's a blessing. It's a way to relieve stress and have fun, as for them it's usually a source of pleasure rather than reproduction. For other people, it is the bane of their existence. They either never get any, or it ends up ruining their relationships.

Some of my earliest memories of sex are interesting. I remember when I first learned where babies came from (age 6). I cried and told my mother that I would never do it. Then when I got older, my mom told me (very bluntly), "I'm not gonna lie. Sex feels good. But it can get you in a lot of trouble."

In my experiences with sex, I can assure that it does get people in trouble. . . emotionally. The hype with sex is that it feels good physically. And that's a feeling we'd all like to have. What people fail to discuss is the emotions behind it. Someone young and naive enough to have sex with someone they think will be around forever would be in for a rude awakening without this information. Women tend to get hurt the most.

According to the New York Times (which comes to disprove the following, but it makes sense anyway), men have this natural tendency to want to spread their seed around. Women are more likely to want to settle down with only one man. So naturally, a woman would cling to a man she had sex with, while a man would not be as emotionally attached.

Your conscious will tell you when sex is wrong. Sometimes it'll be too late. I've heard countless stories of people who regret having sex, whether it had something to do with the partner, or the fact that they may have realized they aren't ready for sex.

Some people are even pressured into sex. Some people are pressured and they may not even realized it. Peers have a way of making others feel lame for not doing what "everyone else" is doing. There would always be those excuses from others: "If you loved me, you would do it...", "You can't keep a man because you don't 'put out' enough.", "I'll only have sex with you if you're on birth control.". Somehow, saying any of these can con people into something they may not really wanna do.

Believe it or not, sex gets old sometimes. At one point or another between partners, one will get bored. Yes, sometimes it's good to try and spice things up. Other times, it's best to just leave the sex alone for a while. Sex is not mandatory in a relationship. It's not required, no matter how bad it is wanted. In all honesty, it is a PRIVILEGE. People have a right to their own bodies. Otherwise, rape would be legal, and we all know how horrible that would be.

Alright, I feel myself rambling now. That's all I've got on sex. For now.