W.O.W

May 12, 2013

For a lame week, it was pretty swift.

In order to have at least one foolproof, though built on bullshit reason to save money, I promised myself to not spend any coin i find with any weird markings, stains, defects or deformities. One particular quarter was more art than eyesore. Someone or something had colored one side, which had a tree on it, with some beautiful fucking purple red color. The ridges where the branches were raised were untouched by the coloring, or maybe just faded by the time it reached my fucking pocket. So it was purple red in the crevices with the coin’s silver branches breaking through. I brought it to work a couple months ago and showed it to my boss who’s also my buddy. “It’s beautiful” she screeched. Did she screech? Unimportant. Important; she said “i’m keeping it” and took my fucking beautiful quarter that I already superstitiously ascribed some magic power. I didn’t know what to do. Should I beat her up? I should’ve tickled her…to death. But that would’ve been unprofessional, and so would’ve my boner.

I said “aight, keep it, i’ll make a deal. I’ll make you a piece of art and next month you’ll give me back the quarter”. She was bout it bout it. It was slightly triple-fold, this deal. One, an excuse to be productive & stick to something; two, a way to get my magic quarter back; three, a subconscious attempt to give her a reason to make her slightly more attracted to me. Not too attracted since she has one of those boyfriend things, but enough brownies that if ever….i would have a decent place on her list of decent dicks. conniving as fuck. Anyway, two and a half months later, her art is still unmade and the adorable slacker-promise-where’s my art-tug of war has lost its cuteness. I could tell she barely respects me and i feel like shit. I am shit. So I finally get into it, even then still waiting until the final hours of task free days to add a stitch or touch to the piece. I’m easily and immediately pulled back to my unfinished college days and habits and it hurts to see that I haven’t grown an iota. I haven’t really had similar deadlines, challenges and assignments since those days to highlight how fucked in the head I am as a responsible human being. So the feeling was jarring, unnerving.

And just like those assignments I did a mediocre job on the piece. It was impossible to hide the disappointment on her end and I’ll never blame her. It looked like shit, it was shit. Fortunately in the end it was pretty much openly and silently understood that it was shit and that I would do it over, good and proper. It’s sitting in my room under barely a speck of tomorrows, i promise. I hope she doesn’t spend my quarter. It is magical, metaphysical for the more scientific minded amongst us. Look at the bit of truth and movement it’s led me to. Now drink horse, drink!

9:47pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvksfS0Y

May 6, 2013

Feverish & Cold

She serves an invitation
to the charms of the night
shall he take flight
or remain in his hole
home found him feverish, he left home cold

Wattage warms to the tweaks
of the lone, lovely fool
their timing is jeweled
their union rotted and old
band found him feverish, he left band cold

His card wouldn’t read
its ability wanes
improperly maintained
the magnetic strip scolds
plastic found him feverish, he left plastic cold

Which drink should he chase
unfamiliar or distant
risk isn’t his business
decisions placed on hold
change found him feverish, he left change cold

Storm of indecision
has no i.d. for the levee
his aim is hardly steady
but still wins the gold
foe found him feverish, he left foe cold

His word atypically kept
still the surprise is his own
from where has this angel flown
his affect rejected, unsold
she found him feverish, she left him cold

8:42pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvkPGfxH

April 27, 2013

Anonymous asked: your blog was so good when it was your poetry. now its just a bunch of re-blogs that thousands of other people have done

you right. dropped the ball purdy hard.

edit update: to fromnonymous

there it lies caked in crust
familiar shape obscured by dust
the ball, the belle the poetry
stalled by slack proclivities

he wore his wank on his sleeve
bared his truth for all to read
but then became a lazy sod
was easier to press reblog

8:04pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvjhT2C9

April 25, 2013

Save the Shoes: A life lesson from a volunteer firefighter

Volunteer firefighter Mark Bezos tells a story of an act of heroism that didn’t go quite as expected — but that taught him a big lesson: Don’t wait to be a hero.

11:28pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvjZ0rNx

April 22, 2013

DOUBBBLLLE TIMMMMEE

kemetically-afrolatino:

source 1; source 2; source 3; source 4; source 5

WELP.

Stop what you are doing.

Read those.

Right now.

I’ll wait.

If you don’t want to read, I’ll explain the key bullet points, but please read them afterwords:

This is not “we didn’t protect him enough.”

This is not “the government screwed up some random detail or accidentally let his killer loose.”

The 111th Military Intelligence had a team taking pictures of his balcony during the assassination.

They brought in a Special Forces 8-Man Sniper Team from the 20th.

Memphis Police withdrew their regular protection detail from him.

A jury of 12 people, six black and six white, found the United States Government guilty of conspiracy to commit murder.

YOUR GOVERNMENT. MY GOVERNMENT. THE GOVERNMENT OF, BY, AND FOR THE PEOPLE, SHOT AND KILLED DR. MARTIN LUTHER KING. And the media never reported the case.

MLK was ASSASSINATED. By a government YOU PAY FOR.

I hate those posts where someone tries to pressure you into reblogging. I almost never ask you to reblog.

This shit is important.

Reblog this. I don’t care what kind of blog you have. I don’t care what you normally talk about.

Reblog this.

holy shit

*sips tea*

(via liberatedmind91)

7:42pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvjJkhRO

(Notes: 50,515)

April 18, 2013

deadinmagazines:

landofloveandlies:

thetinkertoyboy:

raetherandom:

BIkers Against Child Abuse Helps Make Abused Children Feel Safe Again

“A biker’s power and intimidating image can even the playing field for a little kid who has been hurt. If the man who hurt this little girl calls or drives by, or even if she is just scared, another nightmare, the bikers will ride over and stand guard all night.

If she is afraid to go to school, they will take her and watch until she’s safely inside.

And if she has to testify against her abuser in court, they will go, too, walking with her to the witness stand and taking over the first row of seats.”

During one such testimony, a little boy sat on the stand, testifying against his abusive father, who sat less than 10 feet away.

“Why didn’t you say anything before now?” Asked the prosecutor.

“I was scared.” The little boy replied, honestly.

“Why aren’t you scared now, what changed?” The prosecutor watched the little boy closely as he pointed to the front row of seats in the court room.

“Because my friends are scarier than he is.”

shit like this makes me have faith in humanity again.

I don’t know why this was so triggering for me. Maybe because I wish I had someone around like this when I needed it or maybe because it’s just beautiful.

(via queenmarvel)

11:24pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvj0piyJ

(Notes: 146,213)

April 14, 2013

Flirty Projector

“It’s always been natural to me, I like talking to people”. Some shit like that. I asked him if he was naturally good at talking to women or whether he remembered going through a conscious process of getting good at the getting. This guy gets (lot of) pussy. Got. He’s happily married now. Pretty stand-up chap.

Anyway, I don’t know if I was seeking reassurance. If he said “process”, I guess I would have spilled my spazzy spiel on how I’m working on finding a woman. But he didn’t, so I sat there curious. A new thought entered my beautiful face before I had a chance to feel miserable. “Maybe the process doesn’t exist.”

Basically after he answered me, half of me felt maybe I should play the raised-with-no-social-skills card I was dealt and say fuck it to fucking. Just play guitar and focus on whatever passions or responsibilities i have. If i end being some kinda hermit guitar whiz, fugit. Or on the other end of the spectrum, perhaps my daily movements eventually find me in the company of some lovely lad; obviously that would be delightful. I guess the gist is stop caring about talking to women and go live some kind of life, take care of shit that needs the care.

The other half of me felt, you know what i don’t even remember. I think the other half of me is simply lonely & horny screaming “you cornball ass nigga, learn to talk to bitches before your heart turns to sad sad dust and your dick commits suicide.”

It’s funny one half seems more level-headed than the other but the other appears to be the superficially unsettled sage who turned out to be right all along. I’ll find a way to mix the two without going boringly mad.

8:12pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Zq2osvij16BX

April 13, 2013

goodstuffhappenedtoday:

Panera Cares Lets Customers Set The Price

Panera Bread, the nationwide restaurant chain, has opened a new “pay-what-you-can” cafe in downtown Boston, called Panera Cares.

The concept is simple: diners pay what they can afford. So if a meal normally costs $5.00, the customer can pay that price, a little more, or a little less.

Store ambassadors greet customers when they come in to explain how things work, but it can be a little confusing.

“I don’t even know what’s going on. I’m just hungry,” a befuddled customer named Javier said.

Here’s how it works: customers order their food, just like at a regular Panera, but then the cashier tells them the suggested price. Customers can decide how much to pay, and either put their money in a donation box, or tell the cashier how much to charge their credit card.

The Panera Bread Foundation has four other Panera Cares locations in St. Louis, Detroit, Portland, Oregon and Chicago, and the founder Ron Shaich says the system works because the people who can afford to pay more, often do.

“All they have is a responsibility to do the right thing. And you know what’s amazing? So many people do,” Shaich said.

The breakdown of what people pay is about 60-20-20: 60 percent of people pay the suggested price, 20 percent pay less, 20 percent pay more.

Since opening in January, the Panera Cares in Boston has been taking in slightly more than that national average.

Food Insecurity

Panera officials say the chain already donates about $100 million in food and cash a year. But Shaich wanted to become more involved in the issue of food insecurity – the 50 million Americans and one in four children who don’t know where their next meal is coming from.

“This isn’t an issue of simply of homelessness,” Shaich said. “Twenty-five percent of people with food insecurity actually own their own homes, 24 percent are college grads. It’s endemic when you have a country that is 8 to 9 percent unemployment.”

It’s a job requirement that all of the employees at the Boston Panera Cares location understand the issue.

“We’ve all experienced food insecurity one way or another, either personally or we know someone is experiencing it,” said cashier Yetunde Bankole.

Panera Cares workers are also trained to deal with a population that is in need.