May 31st, 2010 by Fresh

Hello Readers…

I hope all is well with you. and that your Memorial Day will be or was spent, to some extent, doing what the holiday was created for – in memory of the men and women in our armed forces. Those that are currently serving and have served for us in all capacities.

Well, it came to fruition this weekend, an experiment I’d been wanting to conduct for about a month now. Yes, the DDO (dedicated day offline) happened yesterday. There are a few of you that I had mentioned this concept to in the last month. I had two particular conversations with Deb Lee, @dallisonlee, professional organizer, on this topic (some of you may know I’ve been a contributing author to her Organize To Revitalize blog on the subject of my adventures in time management and the technology that can aid it). I initially called it a “Digital Day Off”, but thought the term was too broad, broad enough that it would have to included most, if not all, things digital (video games (though I’m not a gamer)), the use of mobile phones, HDTV, etc). My reason for conducting this exercise of “virtual abstinence” was to assess the amount of time I do spend online and how much of it, spent doing certain activities (largely related to social networking), is actually robbing me of time better spent reaching goals. Interestingly enough, the day I had the conversation with Deb, this article appeared in The Post.

My first foray into social networking came back in 2000 via membership to Blackplanet. I actually joined by way of helping a coworker design her site page. I was then that I began to learn the basics of website design (within the HTML code constraints for what Blackplanet would allow). After getting a taste of social networking there, it was basically onto Myspace and Yahoo 360, Vox, blogging from my own website, various IM clients (AIM, Yahoo IM, MSN Messenger), then Twitter, and finally FB (the latter I’ve since left about two weekends ago). Along with the social networking, I always used the net for two basic things – work, and as a learning tool for basically five areas of interest – music production, technology, photography, financial literacy, and web design. Let’s now add the mobile web, and there you have it, a communications medium, now in the palm of your hand, deeply woven into the course of our everyday lives. A communications medium, whose benefits (as well as its negative aspects) range far and wide Looking over the last 10 years of being a regular passenger on the information highway, but growing up through college my first two years of college WITHOUT the internet (fancy that, huh?), I began to remember what life was like without it, and how I spent my time without it. While I can only speak for myself, my assessment was that more time was wasted on the info highway than not. This assessment caused me to purposely conduct the experiment during a normal day – not a day or timeframe where I would be away from the net for whatever reasons (vacation, family visits, etc), but during a time where it was always a mouse click (or similar) away. It created a great challenge in overcoming the temptation to connect. As inferred above, it was done as a matter of habit assessment more than anything else, but the correlation to time management is there. In looking back on my regular online activities, I saw that I could have altered them to achieve what always seems more impossible than not (with my busy schedule) – knocking tasks off my to-do list. Was a DDO really necessary to make this assessment of time management? No, I could have just decided to allot only a certain amount of time online of every aspect of my online daily routines (which probably could have been easier).

The outcome of the experiment allowed me to use a good part of my regular online time time to improve my financial budgeting/investment literacy and revamp a financial improvement SPD (systematic plan of development) for savings, investing, debt reduction and retirement . I also got a great nap in during the early hours of the afternoon . In retrospect, it made assess the extent of my habitual behavior and constant temptation to be “connected”. I won’t say that all possess it to an extent (my wife is a good example of one who spends very little time on the internet – but get rid of the TVs in the house and …never mind…you see the point I am generally illustrating – ).

Now that I’ve taken my first DDO, purposely, I feel it’ll be something that I’ll regularly do, maybe more than just once a week. Curbing time daily spent online is, of course, something to throw into the mix as well, but it wasn’t until today that I really see how a forced day off (for me) is beneficial. The time is currently 11:44 EST, and this DDO will officially be over in less than 16 mins, but I’ve learned some valuable things on a personal level. That’s always a good thing. Back to the SPD. Forget the government, I want to create a stimulus package for my own economic situation.

peace.
F!

November 12th, 2009 by Fresh

Sharing some advice from our company’s Security Office. Read and heed.

Have a great day,

F!

July 24th, 2009 by Fresh

Technology…the continuing boon of mankind, especially in the advent of wired AND wireless communication. I use four primary wireless communication devices: A Mac G5 Dual processor desktop and/or Mac G4 desktop, a laptop (Toshiba Satellite and Powerbook G4) with built-in Wi-Fi connectivity, my Blackberry Curve smartphone, and an iPod Touch 2G. The creation of the Air Force’s Global Positioning System, or GPS has allowed anyone on the earth to determine exactly where they are on the earth. Since then, many vendors have manufactured GPS-enabled devices to harness this technology. Fast forward to today with the many uses of wireless devices and software applications developed for and embedded into cellphones, pdas, etc and you have the capability to now share with the world a very accurate representation of where you are in a very small envelope of time. Many of you reading this use this “apps” on a regular basis: Brightkite, Ubertwitter, Loopt, and tons of others allow not just people on your social networks, but the entire world, know where you are, depending on how you have your communication prefereneces configured for the location awareness app(s) you use. Many, if not all, of these apps allow you to send maps of where you are located based upon associated latitude and longitude coordinates given by the GPS system. You can send photos with your camera enabled device also associating your location. Frankly, I think it’s a fascinating aspect of communications technology that definitely bares its pros.

Last year I read a VERY good article in Wired Magazine about an iPhone user who decided to conduct a little experiment using the location awareness capability of his iPhone. The experiment was very interesting and for anyone interested in the social aspect of location awareness, I suggest it as recommended reading…the article is here.

As freely as it is used, I believe there should also be some thought in how freely one does use it. I’ve heard of many occasions where people tweeted, or otherwise posted there location over some timeframe which yield unfortunate results. One example was a business man who tweeted he was going on a business trip for a week and the location for the trip, only to return home and find his house…..robbed. Coincidence, maybe…but making your location easily aware to the public, along with the ancillary information u provided with it, should at least garner some thought as to what the consequences could be.

On a related note, I recently read a blog post by someone who I consider a super tech girl. (lol) and fellow Twitter user about how the EXIF data that digital cameras transmit (via wirelessly or not) can include the location and time of where that picture was taken (called “geotagging”) depending on if the hosting site of the pic strips out that data. One negative aspect of this is if the pic contained the outside of your house, or even the inside of it, complete with your VERY expensive belongings….you know where I am going with this. I also came across a great article on Lifehacker about how location awareness can change your life.

I love technology and embrace it, but the best uses of technology occur with the greatest exercise of common sense! Just some food for thought..stay hungry.

Thanks for the read….

peace,
F!

July 15th, 2009 by Fresh

It’s been a while since I wrote a blog post, so….hello! LOL.

For the last week or so, I’ve been in a rental car while my regular ride is in the body shop. While I miss my regular auto and all the amenities therein, I really miss my satellite radio.

Mannnn….with the variety of programming provided by satellite radio, I really have found out how much I miss it when I start listening to…………urban contemporary radio. I’m really not hatin’ and yes I am post 40 years old but….where… is the talent in today’s urban contemporary R&B??? Somebody? The keyword, I believe, in this phrase is “contemporary”, which in itself (by default) describes the state of today’s R&B…most of it anyway.

Technology has made it such that anyone with some modest computer skills or (hardware and/or software) can compose music (if you want to call it that, in some instances)…or “beats” (ugh). Ok, a good deal of you reading this know I am a musician. I play three instruments, guitar, bass, and keyboards, in that order. Beats…..are what I know to be the drums and percussions in a song. Me, I like to make “beats” as part of my songs. Am I clownin’ the phrase “beats” (a term that has become all encompassing in computer and electronic music production systems), yeah…I am. I’m clowning it only because making popular music today, especially in the urban circles, has been really watered down and devoid of any true musical knowledge of theory and arranging. Gone (in urban music) is “the band”…the only known remnant of such today would be….The Roots. In no other genre (save genres of electronic dance music which never had bands anyway, except in the early days with the likes Devo, Kraftwerk, etc) of music is “the band” really dead, especially rock and country music. I think that fact draws a direct correlation to the lack of *musical* talent in popular urban contemporary music.

Is there anything *wrong* with where urban contemporary music has evolved to? No, I don’t think so. I do think that the music has evolved, but incompletely…the “talent” was left behind for the most part. I believe hip-hop has had the greatest evolution of any genre that I have listened to (especially being a listener BEFORE it went commercial radio). The evolution of those in charge of A&R has a great deal to do with where the music is as well. For years the marketing of R&B as long been about what the street says is hot…flash and show vs talent. Long gone are the long multiyear contracts for artists for various reasons, but with that leaves the great anticipation of your favorite artist coming out with a release of jams every year (I know some of u remember this….(wink)).

The music industry has evolved, as a whole, not necessarily for the best (in my own mind). I don’t think listeners in their 20′s would necessarily agree but, just as I was, it’s what you’re are continually force fed (as is said) or exposed to commercially that you determine as normal, and even good.

I’m sure my parents and yours would probably expound on the state of music I grew up on as teenager/young adult, in the same way I am in this post. I think the difference here versus then would be the inclusion of actual musical talent in what I was growing up listening to, versus what is prevalent now. There was a surge of “neo soul” that was big, seems like we just came off the “throwback” era of current artists bringing back that true soul sound (I actually like Raphael Saadiq’s “100 Yard Dash), etc…but they don’t appear to be fueled by the record industry with respect to what is “hot” and selling.

In defense of urban contemporary music, I would never say it takes no talent to create what is in heavy rotation. It does take talent to leverage the technology of recording to manifest the end product, it’s the theory, love and joy of learning to compose on a musical instrument that is lacking. I, too, am an electronic musician as well and love some of the genres that are strictly electronic (hence my features of such on my weekly podcast). I think the advent of technology will continue to make such a desire to learn an instrument diminish as times go by…IF…such a desire is not kept alive through various means (people and programs, etc).

As for satellite radio and especially internet radio, they both give a welcomed alternative to commercial radio. Couple that with the state of music distribution via the internet, the entire recording industry IS evolving. I miss my XM, not just because I dont have to deal with commercials every 10 mins either. I hope to have my ride back next week.

What are your thoughts?

peace…
F!

June 7th, 2009 by Fresh

Saggin Pants

This was passed onto me by an old HS friend. While you have probably heard this story (the backwards spelling of the word), I have seen other than black men sporting what they call this “fad”.

The message is as follows….

Pass this on to Our Youth, Our Parents, Our (not only) Black Men and Women
Letter from a college student

The other day, a friend of mine visited me in the lobby of my dorm just to
chat while her laundry was drying. As we were chatting, two young freshmen came
by. One of the 2 boys wanted to ‘talk’ to my friend (as in date). She
asked him how old they were, and both of the boys replied 18. My friend and I
both laughed hysterically because we are both 22 years old. After my friend left, the young men were still hanging around and one wanted
to know how he could gain her interest.

The first thing I told him to do was to pull up his pants! He asked why, and
then said he liked saggin ‘ his pants. I told him to come over to my
computer and spell the word saggin’. Then I told him to write the word
saggin ‘ backwards.

S-A-G-G-I-N
N-I-G- G-A-S
I told him the origin of that look was from centuries ago. It was the intent
of slave owners to demoralize the field workers by forbidding them to wear a
belt as they worked in the fields or at any other rigorous job. In addition,
men in prison wore their pants low when they were “spoken for”. The
other reason their pants looked like that was they were not allowed to have
belts because prisoners were likely to try to commit suicide. And, saggin’
pants prevents you from running.

We as young Black people have to be the ones to effect change. We are dying.
The media has made a mockery of the Black American. Even our brothers and
sisters from Africa don’t take us seriously. Something as simple as pulling
up your pants and standing with your head held high could make the biggest
difference in the world’s perception of us. It is time to do right by
ourselves. We need to love and embrace each other. No one is going to do that
for us. It all comes down to perception. What people perceive is what reality to
them is. We have to change not only the media’s perception of us, but we
need to change our perception of ourselves.
Remember all eyes are on you Black Man. All eyes are on you Black Woman. All
eyes are on your Black Child. People point the finger at us and expect us to
engage in negative and illegal activities, to manifest loud, boisterous
behavior, to spend our hard earned money in their stores, buying goods we
don’t need, or really want. We have allowed not only the media, but the
government and the world to portray us as a ‘sub-culture. ‘ They have
stripped our culture down to the point where the image of Black people is
perpetuated as rappers, athletes, drug users, and consumers of junk food,
expensive tennis shoes, expensive cars, expensive TVs, cell phones and not
investing in homes for our families.

We are so much more!!!!!!!
To all our Black Men : It’s time to stand up. There are billions of
Black Women who want to do nothing more than worship the ground that you walk
on. We are so in love with your potential. We want to have your back, we want
to love, support20and cherish every ounce of your being. But with that you have
to show that you are willing to be the head of our households. You have to
prove yourselves worthy of our submission. We need you to be hard working…Not
a hustler. We need you to seek higher education, to seek spirituality. We need
you to stand! And trust us; we will have your back. We know that it gets hard.
We know you get weary. Trust and believe that there is nothing that a Black
Man and a Black Woman can’t handle with GOD on their side.

To all our Black Women : It is also time for you to stand up. It is time
for you to stop using our bodies as our primary form of communication. It is
time to be that virtuous woman that Proverbs spoke of. You cannot sit by the
wayside while our men are dying by the masses. You are the epitome of Black
Love. It starts within you. You need to speak with conviction to let not only
our Black Men know, but the world, that you are the Mothers of this world. You
are so powerful. You are so beautiful. You need to love and embrace every
blessing God has given us physically, emotionally and spiritually.

For all our Black Children : We need to love them. We need to teach them.
We need to stand up for them. We need to protect them. We need to show them
that there are no ‘get rich quick’ schemes. We need to tell them that
they WILL die trying if they submit to a life of crime and deceit. We need to
teach our children that no one will love them the way we can. And being a
basketball player, a rapper, or a drug dealer is not reality. It’s not
realistic and only a small percentage of people ever make it as a rapper or
professional athlete. We need to teach our children that we can be more than
rappers and athletes. We can be the owners of these sports teams. We can be
the CEO’s of OUR fortune 500 companies. We need to believe in literacy.

Please Keep This Going & Have a wonderful day

June 3rd, 2009 by Fresh

Greetings readers. Here is the third “P” (or I should say “P”s from motivational speaker Jewel Diamond Taylor from her list of life-guiding principles.

Number 3: Pen and Paper: Thou shalt write down thy goals. Think it, then ink it. Be specific, have a target date, and review them often.