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Saturday, December 25, 2004

Merry Christmas!

Snowglobe
http://ww12.e-tractions.com/snowglobe/globe.htm

Dame Dash Bear
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=2387&item=5544561244&rd=1


Thursday, December 23, 2004

I'm locked up! (They won't let me out!)

I know, I know, I know...the holiday season sucks. Not everyone is partial
to to all the merriment and festivities. The last minute shopping.
The over-spending. The long holiday dinners with the in-laws. And God forbid
your not a Christian or are one of the more advanced Christians who are aware
that Jesus wasn't born on December 25th (Hi Ma!) But this year, I refuse to
let reality rain on my holiday season. Yeah, Christmas is all commercial
now anyway, but you know what? With all the madness I have been through
this year (ask my friends, they'll tell you) and all the madness we all have been
through this year, I say let the real world wait. Let's celebrate! If you don't have
any loot for gifts, are mad at everyone in your family and don’t want to see them
at X-Mas dinner, or are just a scrooge in general, be grateful for what you've got.
Some of us have it much worse this holiday season. Peace to all our soldiers and
innocents fighting and dying overseas! God bless you all! And peace to the woman
you love to hate! Keep your head up M.


Dear Friends,

When one is incarcerated with 1,200 other inmates, it is hard to be selfish

at Christmas hard to think of Christmases past and Christmases future --
that I know will be as they always were for me -- beautiful!
So many of the women here in Alderson will never have the joy and well
being that you and I experience. Many of them have been here for years
-- devoid of care, devoid of love, devoid of family.

I beseech you all to think about these women -- to encourage the American

people to ask for reforms, both in sentencing guidelines, in length of
incarceration for nonviolent first-time offenders, and for those involved in
drug-taking. They would be much better served in a true rehabilitation
center than in prison where there is no real help, no real programs to
rehabilitate, no programs to educate, no way to be prepared for life "out there"
where each person will ultimately find herself, many with no skills and no
preparation for living.

I am fine, really. I look forward to being home, to getting back to my valuable

work, to creating, cooking, and making television. I have had time to think,
time to write, time to exercise, time to not eat the bad food, and time to walk
and contemplate the future. I've had my work here too. Cleaning has been my
job, washing, scrubbing, sweeping, vacuuming, raking leaves, and much more.
But like everyone else here, I would rather be doing all of this in my own home,
and not here -- away from family and friends.

I want to thank you again, and again, for your support and encouragement.

You have been so terrific to me and to everyone who stood by me.
I appreciate everything you have done, your emails, your letters, and your
kind, kind words. Happy holidays,

Martha Stewart

P.S. I thought you might be interested in the
brief my lawyers filed with the Court this afternoon.
~~~
In Sports:

Holy cow! HOW ABOUT THEM JETS!!! My squad is about to make me a
very happy man.
Heading into what may be one of their biggest games yet, Gang Green looks ready for war!
At least Chad is. He is going to war with the media and I for one support him and what he has to say. He should pipe down a bit until we at least win the division. Then talk all the sh!t you want.
But regardless, I gotta do it one time for my boys......
J--E--T--S!!!! JETS--JETS--JETS!!
Meanwhile, Monday night was interesting as well. Who would have thought that Miami would do it to the Pats? Who would have thought that Tom Brady would "throw a dumb pass" and have a pass deflected for the first time this entire season? Who knew Miami had it in them and would sneak past the champs? Next season, you guys should wear the Syracuse style jerseys. I think you blinded the Pats defensive line!

I'm outta here for the holidays! Jr. and I are gonna wait up for St. Nick and sk him if he wants to play Sonic or Madden 2005. Hope you get all you want this X-Mas!

Happy Holidays! (even to those of you who bar-humbug)

Wednesday, December 22, 2004

The Dis-Education of Kanye West



I must be living in a cave or something. I had no idea there was such an anti-Kanye West movement going on. We get a guy making (or buying) a song about Jesus and gang of fools start hating on him. But if he did “buy” the song “Jesus Walks, so what?

I once did some production work for a once popular, now fallen off music producer, with the assumption that he was going to put me on. Months later, I hear my drum tracks and rare jazz samples on a very popular female emcee’s song. The producer in question refused to return any of my calls. He would have gotten knocked the f’ out the night I bumped into him at a major recording studio in Manhattan, if his pistol packing bodyguards would have had the night off. Now that is f’ed up.

Kanye’s deal doesn’t seem to be that bad to me. I agree, he can come off a bit annoying, but I can’t totally throw him under the bus. Not yet. But you can! Here are some links on the subject. Go to Byron Crawford.com for more info.
http://www.sixshot.com/articles/4769/
http://www.rapnewsdirect.com/News/2004/12/17/K.West.Pet/


Jacked this from Bol..don’t hate me..hate Republicans!
http://www.ericblumrich.com/ihr.html

Tuesday, December 21, 2004

Def Poetry Plugged In-January 28th

To all my Canheads and poetry heads in NYC, make sure you mark your calendars for this event! Canhead’s favorite poet ,Tantra, will be on the stage along with some heavyweights in the spoken world scene. This one is not to be missed!

Danny Simmons & BAM present Def Poetry Plugged In

Vernon Reid Poetry Project
featuring:

Sonia Sanchez
Ursula Rucker with special guests Karen Gibson
Roc and Fluid,
Sydnee Stewart,
Maritri & Tantra

Hosted by Reg E. Gaines
Curated by Kamilah Forbes

BAM Howard Gilman Opera House

Jan 28 at 7:30pmTickets: $20, 25

---The following was taken from the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s website---


Danny Simmons and BAM present Def Poetry Plugged In, a collaborative evening fusing spoken word, rock, and hip-hop that features poets and musicians sharing their love for wordplay and good grooves.


Poet and playwright Sonia Sanchez, a strong voice for racial and social justice for more than four decades, performs for the first time with guitarist Vernon Reid (Black Rock Coalition, Living Colour).


Co-headliner Ursula Rucker is a sophisticated and seductive poetess whose socio-political work has been featured on two solo albums and in the coveted album-ending spot on The Roots' first three releases.


Also on the bill: Funky poetic vocalist Karen Gibson Roc and her revolutionary band Fluid; poet, actor, and playwright Sydnee Stewart; and Brooklyn-based vocalist/poetess duo Maritri & Tantra.


Reg E. Gaines (lyricist for Bring in 'Da Noise, Bring in 'Da Funk, founding member of Scratch DJ Academy) hosts. Russell Simmons will make a special appearance (doing what he usually does).



http://www.bam.org/events/05RBAM/05RBAM.aspx

Monday, December 20, 2004

~Gee our old LaSalle ran great~



F' The I-Pod, we got the OG of mobile music machines right here. So what it ate both my Lisa Lisa and The Cult Jam and DJ Red Alert tapes. I still got love for that little Walkman. You couldn't tell me I wasn't the man when I had this. Yes I had the exact one pictured above, and it kept me happy during many a detention and in-school suspension day.Like Edith and my boy Archie say, "Those were the days."


Bums at school were always begging me to borrow it, like they would be able to give back such a work of technical art. Like I would be able to part with it for more than 6 minutes Dougie Fresh your on. I would spark fire out your monkey azz if you even looked like you wanted to ask me such stupid sh!t!

Sad to say, my Walkman introduced me to a life of crime, as I began my "Summer of '84 AA Battery Shoplifting Spree" that held every store in Minglewood Acres (my old stomping grounds) in terror! I had the game mastered, being able to boost a AA 8 pack in 10 seconds flat. You heard correct party people, the Walkman was my gatway drug. Soon, I graduated from stealing batteries for Walkmans, to stealing batteries for boomboxes, cables for my home stereo, and finally...the top of Mount Zion..the DJ setup. But it all started with that thin gold Walkman.

Don't take it personal Mr. Jobs. If your feeling generous and want to donate a I-Pod to the Canhead Music Research Department, I'll gladly accept. I promise to give all misplaced I-Pods a happy home. And once their time in the new gadget spotlight is up, I will post a throwback page just to remind the lost youth of tomorrow what good portable music machines were all about.



Go find your old Walkman and reminisce! Just don't sing out loud on the train or at the gym when your listening to your old Night Ranger or Kid n Play tapes. I'm outta here meathead! Get outta my chair will ya, and while your at it, play my outro!!

Dies Natali Invictus aka 'The birthday of the unconquered"

I hope you are all enjoying your holidays and spending it with you family and loved ones. Take advantage of the time off and get some rest, watch football, eat, and be merry. For tomorrow, I break down the true origin of this holiday we go into debt for. Ahh what the hell, I’ll do it right now. (I gotta be me!)

~Taken from Werner Keller's book "The Bible as History"

"December 25 is referred to in documents as Christmas Day in A.D. 324 for the first time. Under the Roman emperor Justinian [A.D. 527-565] it was recognized as an official holiday. An old Roman festival played a major part in the choice of this particular day. December 25 in ancient Rome was the 'Dies Natali Invictus,' 'the birthday of the unconquered,' the day of the winter solstice and at the same time, in Rome, the last day of the Saturnalia, which had long since degenerated into a week of unbridled carnival . . ." (p.331).

~Excerpt taken from http://www.eternalcog.org

The Tower of Babel

"Virtually all pagan practices had their beginnings in the city of Babylon during the time of Nimrod. Nimrod was the grandson of Ham, the son of Noah (Gen. 10:6-8). He was the founder of Babylon (v. 10). Nimrod formed cities instead of going out and replenishing the earth as God had commanded Noah to do.

One of Nimrod’s accomplishments was building the tower of Babel. Some believe he did this to protect people from the potential threat of another flood from God. The scriptures reveal that Nimrod was "a mighty hunter before the Lord" (Genesis 10:9). The word "before" is better translated "against" and it is clear that he became the first post-flood dictator. The name "Nimrod" is translated from the Hebrew word "marad" and literally means "he rebelled. Ancient traditions regarding this apostate leader show that he rebelled against God, and in so doing, created a worldwide apostasy.

According to tradition, Nimrod married his own mother, Semeramis. Then, upon his death, Semeramis began to teach that her son had been reincarnated in the form of a full-grown evergreen tree which supposedly sprang up from a dead tree stump. On each anniversary of Nimrod’s birthday, December 25, Semeramis would visit this evergreen tree, claiming that Nimrod would leave gifts for her there. Through her politics and the use of her son’s name, Semeramis became the queen of Babylon, the home of the Chaldee Mysteries. She was also regarded as the "queen of Heaven" and "the mother of the divine son." After generations of these idolatrous practices and traditions, Nimrod came to be considered the son of Baal, the sun god.

He and his mother became the chief entities of worship as a Madonna and child. This belief and practice spread to Egypt, where the names of the gods were Isis and Osiris. The son Osiris was born December 25. In Asia it was Cybele and Deonius. In Rome they were called Fortuna and Jupiter. Throughout the world we still find the remnants of mother and child worship to this day. It is no surprise that this same system still exists at the end of the age. It is called "Mystery Babylon" (Revelation 17:5). Shockingly, it is disguised as Christianity and is still practiced in the celebration of Christmas."

~There are tons of articles and information on this subject on the web. Don’t get it twisted, I still got junior a Gamecube for X-mas, and if your wondering what El Q Tha Gr8 wants, I do have my eye on one or two things. But that doesn’t mean that I will blindly follow the masses down the road of an old school remixed Babylonian holiday. At the same time, I won’t yank Christmas away from my son and turn him into an over analytical freak of nature. (The world already has one of those!) So it’s on with the usual, gifts and cartoons on Saturday, bills on Monday.

~Know the ledge~

Sunday, December 19, 2004

Reminding Me Of Self aka Brother Cue

I’ve been thinking about my father a lot these days. Maybe it’s because I don’t get to see my son as much as I would like to after the break-up, or maybe it’s just me getting old, soft and sentimental.

Anyway, in honor of my pops, I thought I’d dig up a few tracks to dedicate to him, and post them here. A little background for you, waaaaay back in the day, my father was a radio DJ, so music was always in my house. I remember waiting up late at night, just to hear him wish me a goodnight sleep and play a song for me. Some of the songs posted are ones he would play on air or around the house. Hope it gives you a warm fuzzy and makes you as misty as it did me. Love you daddy! (Mamma and Willie Mae get a page dedicated to them next!)

Colour My World- Make Me Smile-Chicago
Pops loves Chicago and so do I! I practiced the drum solo at the end of “Smile” for months on end to the dismay of my folks.

Deacon Blues” – Steely Dan
I’m not sure how crazy my dad is about this song, but it sure does remind me of him. I’m not sure why. Maybe because it was always on the soft rock radio station he played in his insurance office when I worked for him. Regardless, this is his speed right here….

Jungle Boogie” “Open Sesame” “Summer Madness” “Funky Man”—
Kool and the Gang
Ohhhh weeee! It’s no wonder I grew up to be a balding B-Boy! Saturday afternoon house chores were always backed by Kool and the crew, Sam & Dave, or The Godfather himself. That’s why I can name most of the samples used in hip-hop songs, I still remember them from back then! “Open Sesame” was on the first album my pops ever bought me(”Saturday Night Fever”) and it was the sample I gave to Jose Nunez and Harry “Choo-Choo” Romero for “The Doo Dance” on Gossip Records (go look it up!). And “Funky Man” was my first favorite song. Much love pop, much love!

If You Don’t Know Me” “Be For Real” - Harold Melvin and The Blue Notes
May not be Pops favorite but it’s one of mine. “If You Don’t Know Me” is another one!

And finally, two songs that sum up my early years in the house….

Fire” – Ohio Players “Do It (Til Your Satisfied)” – B.T. Express

I was all over these records. The Ohio Players album covers made me drool, the song sounded like a fire was going on in the studio, and my little feet couldn’t stop moving to BT Express! “Whatever It Is..” Still love it!

That’s it…I bet he still has all these records. Hey pop, give you boy a call once in a while, and not to ask me the question you always ask me either…your grandson says hello!

Listen and Read Sunday



~Listen
"My City" Common featuring Malik Yusef-off the "One Day It'll Make Sense" lp.
~Read
This the city of Chicago
The state of confusion
The style I'm using is free
Or at least it would be if my mind was
Peep I'm behind cause I didn't handle my function while in high school
Although I was cool
The hood I live in ain't that proper
Cause a cop a stop ya
And have you at a hundred and eleventh before you can say not guilty
I'm not filthy
Nor am I rich
Ain't that a bitch
Like life is
Not your wife is
See that your better halve
Do your math
And peep that two halves make a whole
And all I have to hold
Is my self pride
So these streets I strive
Like a Black Panther
Asking can the situation get much worst
All I do is try to appeal to the masses
As the phrase keep it real passes
The teeth of too many phoney individuals
Snakes, that smooth like criminalsT
hey create chemicals
That the Earth hate
Doing their damndest to decrease my birth rate
I'd settle for lesser knowing I'm worth wait
Or at least my weight in precious gems
So I'm steadily steadly steadly
Trying to lose my religion, like R E M
Created in His own image so are we him?
And through all this crises
Shid(Shit) I wonder where Christ is
Well he damn sure not in K town or the wild hundreds
Where they broadcast G.D. till the world blow-up
And Stone run it
Hunted by police for display in state vile cages
Come out to make minimum wages
And with a desiese that are contagious
It is fucking outrages
The amounts of Black and Brown they lock up
But the Most High encourages me to put the glock up
And Stock up on do for self knowledge
A brother couldn't afford to go to collage
So I had to learn form the school of hard knock
On the hard blocks of the ChiEven I, think about moving out to River Oaks
As my liver soaks
In mad Hennesy
Cause I got a bad tendency
To do a lot of drinking
Now I do a lot of thinking
Blinking, was your third eye
When you heard I was one of the chosen one
Industry doors keep closing
(sing)
Watch the closing doors
Niggas want a record deal
But can they deal with a record?
Cause once they get rich
They tend to switch
Like a sissy
Please miss me
With all that bullshit you popping
This knowledge I'm gonna keep dropping
Even if you had one of them red octagon
Motherfuckers say Mylik how you make your living?
I say by breathing oxygen