Wednesday, January 27, 2016
Wandering eyes
Hey you!!! I know that you're watching me... it could be for many reasons! I hope you are enjoying what you see this is who I am really am and what you see is what you get although you didn't get the opportunity to experience the genuine side of me yet, every time we speak its always brief and you always wrap that right arm around me and I do my best to embrace you as well... We both have some shit we are trying to get through at the moment so we are distant at the moment but there isn't a day that goes by I don't think of you... whatever I'm doing I think of you when I'm at the gym, in dance class and more so before my night ends. The shy and mysterious side won't let me come at you the way that I really want to but I hope all is well...I hope its all working out and I will be checking on you a couple weeks when my schedule calm down a lil bit ....à bientôt
Hippie At heart
So recently I took a quiz to determine what my hippie name would be Quiet storm....interesting right!!! I consider myself a modern day hippie. I developed this mindset that I could care less about others opinion. I don't care about what people say about me. All I care about is being happy and enjoying the pleasures of life. But any who here is the explanation of my name
People may think you're shy because you're quiet, but you're just waiting for the right moment to change the world. You're incredibly smart and you will stand up for your rights or those of others when you feel compelled. People should be careful not to underestimate you.
Tuesday, January 26, 2016
Random thought
Why do some men find it hard to let a woman know how he truly feels about her? I think that some of these men are letting their pride and egos get in the way. If you see a woman that you think is interesting or mysterious why not check in with her once in a while and see how she's doing via text or whatever do this at least twice a week and if things are going smooth ask her out to see what she is about. I think men are very close minded when it comes to dating a different type of woman but then I think it is their pride and ego that gets in the way. Let that pride and ego up real quick
Sunday, January 17, 2016
Goal Setting
Some say its a New Year A new me. I simply call it goal setting. Since I was 1, I would list short and long term goals that I wanted to pursue now at the age of 25 I can say that I still goal set. I find it to be one of the best things to happen to man-kind. I understand that not everyone is goal- oriented and don't feel the need to set goals.
Saturday, November 28, 2015
Rasta and the ball
I have been exposed to the Rastafarian culture for all of my life. I have African and Caribbean roots, my aunt married my uncle who hails from Port Au Prince Haiti. I have been introduced to so many different cultures as a child and even now I have cousins who calls me Rasta girl and that one cousin that is the seed of my aunt and my Haitian uncle that calls me rude girl. As a child I noticed that my cousins and uncles played soccer at each of our gatherings. As I got older they stopped playing and just continued to watch it on TV and attend soccer games. My favorite Bob Marley who is a prominent figure in the Rastafarian culture played soccer a lot. What is it with the Rasta and the ball?
Could it be a way of redemption? Could it be apart of the Jamaican recreation? Or could it just be a sport they take pride in?
Humble Heart Revisted!!
I had the honor of interviewing this gentle giant over the summer. He took time out of his busy schedule to chat with me. It took me by surprise but not really because all things happen for a reason. Although my life is busy due to school, dance and shooting episodes of the show Empire. I get to see this humble hippie a lot more because I now work for the Chicago Bulls organization. Being around him is the best his presence is just the warmest. I appreciate all that he does for my city on and off the court he is such a caring and kind person. His heart is as big as his hair. In case you missed the article in July I present to you Humble Heart Revisited.
Joakim Noah whose father Yannick Noah was a well-known Cameroonian tennis player from France, spent most of his adolescent years in France. Noah's parents divorced when he was 12 years old. He relocated to New York city with his mother Cecilia Rodhe. He grew up in the hell's kitchen area "New york city is great it shaped who I am. I believe that people are a product of their environment. I am in the position I am in because of my neighborhood.
There are many athletes in the city of Chicago that may contribute to other charities of their choice. I noticed that Joakim does a lot in the communities in Chicago "My father is from West Africa he always gave back. He taught me the importance of giving back. I grew up in New York there were community centers they helped me become the player that I am today. It has everything to do with the community centers, compared to New York Chicago doesn’t have many community centers. Chicago has done so much for me I feel so blessed to play for such a prestigious team and its important that I give back to this city that is hurting." For the last three years his Noah's Arc foundation has created a peace tournament that brings together people from almost each side of Chicago to play a game of basketball that takes place on the south side of Chicago each year in September"The first tournament was at St Sabina I teamed up with Father Phfleger. Its about bringing different people from different areas to play in the name of peace. The tournament goes all year there are games all year round. Its great to see people who get looked at negatively come together to play a game of basketball. I also have people come in talk to the youth."
Joakim has been doing a great job so far with encouraging our youth to come together. I noticed that a lot of the young men need resources and activities to help keep them out of the streets. I was curious so I asked Joakim was he considering creating any other foundations or mentor ship and internship programs for our youth in Chicago and New York? "My foundation is growing this is the 3rd year. It's growing at a good pace. We have as many games as possible for the kids. My organization keeps kids active. It makes me sad when I see young kids with nothing to do. I wanted to make sure there were things for the kids to do due to gangs being out of control. Basketball will reel everyone in at once. Once that's done mentor ship happens. My foundation is not there but it is growing my dream is to bring inner city kids to Africa and create a pen pal partnership and show them what Africa is like."
I think that it is very important for our youth to have resources that they can rely on and also caring individuals like Joakim to look to for words of encouragement and words of wisdom "I just want the youth to stay proactive and grind hard nothing comes easily. There are a lot of distractions stay focused only you know you whats best for you. Make your own decisions. Stay focused keep your eyes on the prize."
It is very rare that you will find someone who is so passionate about helping to eliminate the violence that is claiming the lives of our youth,who at least want to experience what it is like to be able to enjoy life without having to fall victim to the violence.We need more advocates like Joakim that are willing to stand up and protect the youth and the streets of Chicago. Everyone deserves a chance to enjoy life and fulfill their purpose. I was so honored to have had the opportunity to interview this caring, humbled and determined soul that many see as the star center for the Chicago Bulls. I see him as a humbled person with a heart of Gold.
http://desdancerlovesports.tumblr.com/
Thursday, September 10, 2015
WITH AGE COMES....
I have never been too quick to jump into relationships. Time wasted is worst than money wasted. I can't deal with a man that is not level headed, goal-oriented and knows what he wants. I like a man that is kind, humble, caring, loving, adventurous and respectful. I'm approaching my 25th birthday(September 12) my aunt asked me why haven't I settled down. The thing is I'm waiting for the man that I am meant to be with. I'm waiting for the man that truly understands me, respects me and is kind and humble. I have goals and dreams and he has to be able to understand that I will be busy but I will make time for him. I have a infinite love for the arts, dance and visual arts in particular. I have a passion for helping the youth and caring for children I got my first babysitting gig when I was 13 and loved it to the very last drop screaming babies and all. I am misunderstood by most and I am waiting until I find that special man that is willing to discover who I am.
Gone but not forgotten
Saartjie "Sara" Baartman was apart of a freak show due to her enormous breasts, enlarged hips and over sized buttocks. She had steatopygia. Steatopygia is is a genetic characteristic generally prevalent in women of African origin, most notably among though not limited to the Khoisan.
Saartije was a KhoiKhoi woman from South Africa. she was sold to London by an enterprising Scottish doctor named Alexander Dunlop, accompanied by a showman named Hendrik Cesars. She spent four years in Britain being exhibited for her large buttocks. The labia minora or inner lips, of the ordinary female genitalia are greatly enlarged in Khoi-San women, and may hang down three or four inches below the vulva when women stand, thus giving the impression of a separate and enveloping curtain of skin".
In the 1800s, people in London were able to pay two shillings apiece to gaze upon her body in wonder. Baartman was considered a freak of nature. For extra pay, one could even poke her with a stick or finger. Baartman never allowed this trait to be exhibited while she was alive, and an account of her appearance in London in 1810 makes it clear that she was wearing a garment, although a tight-fitting one.Her treatment caught the attention of British abolitionists, who tried to rescue her, but she claimed that she had come to London on her own accord. In 1814, after Dunlop's death, she traveled to Paris. With two consecutive showmen, Henry Taylor and S. Reaux, she amused onlookers who frequented the Palais-Royal. She was subjected to examination by Georges Cuvier, a professor of comparative anatomy at the Museum of Natural History. In the post- Napoleonic era France, sideshows like the Hottentot Venus lost their appeal. Baartman lived on in poverty, and died in Paris of an undetermined inflammatory disease in December 1815. After her death, Cuvier dissected her body, then displayed her remains. For more than a century and a half, visitors to the Museum of Man in Paris could view her brain, skeleton and genitalia until she was buried.
Although Baartman refused to be an experiment while she was alive. With permission from police, Cuvier, who had amassed the world's largest collection of human and animal specimens, conducted an autopsy on Baartman's dead body. First he made a cast of her body, then he preserved her brain and genitals.Cuvier concluded that "the Hottentots" were closer to great Apes than humans. The rest of Baartman's flesh was boiled down to bones for Cuvier's collection and displayed for years afterward. Baartman's body did not receive a proper burial until much later.After her death, Sarah Baartman's body underwent dissection and 'analysis' of her brain, organs, genitalia and buttocks. Blaineville and Cuvier had asked Baartman to allow them to study her nude while she had been alive and she had refused them this request. No consent had been given by Baartman to allow scientists to see, touch or use her body for 'scientific' purposes after her death.
Della Perry and Ruth Whiteside are feminist theorists who have discussed how the label 'disability' and the term 'biological determinism' have affected the exploitation, discrimination and abuse of women and people of African descent. They comment on how differences in biology have dictated a social hierarchy and stratification. Sara Baartman's organs, genitalia and buttocks were thought to be evidence of her sexual primitivism and intellectual equality with that of an orangutan.
During the lengthy negotiation to have Baartman's body returned to her home country after her death, the assistant curator of Musee de l' homme, Philippe Mennecier argued against her return stating: "we never know what science will be able to tell us in the future. If she is buried, this chance will be lost ... for us she remains a very important treasure." According to Sadiah Qureshi, due to the continued treatment of Baartman's body as a cultural artifact, Philippe Mennecier's statement is contemporary evidence of the same type of ideology that surrounded Saartjie Baartman's body while she was alive in the 19th century.
Media representation and feminist criticism
In November 2014, Paper Magazine released a cover of Kim Kardashian in which she was illustrated as balancing a champagne bottle on her extended rear. The cover received much literary criticism for endorsing "the exploitation and fetishism of the black female body."The photo has received much criticism and commentary on mimicking the way in which Baartman was represented as the "Hottentot Venus" during the 19th century. According to writer Geneva S. Thomas, anyone that is aware of black women's history under colonialist influence would consequentially be aware that Kardashian's photo easily elicits memory regarding the visual representation of Baartman.
Similarly, Baartman and other black female slaves were illustrated and depicted in a specific form to identify features, which were seen as proof of ideologies regarding black female primitivism.
Young boys and so called men in the new generation often refer to women mainly African American women as THOTS. That horrible nasty word stemmed from from her nickname Hottentot Venus. The KKK even adopted the term during slavery that is how they referred to black women.
http://keediescorner.com/2014/08/02/the-origin-of-the-word-thot/
Saartjie Baartman's grave, on a hill overlooking Hankey in the Gamtoos River Valley, Eastern Cape, South Africa
Signboard at the grave, including the poem by
Sunday, September 6, 2015
I AM A WOMAN
People say that women can’t be great athletes. Women happen to be more than athletes in the sports industry they happen to be reporters and anchors. You see women like Sage Steele sitting behind the desk on ESPN giving the men a run for their money. I came across a very interesting article titled “ Women in sports:Dispelling some myths.” In this article it discusses five myths about women's athletics. First the article discuss the issue of women’s sports not getting enough media coverage. Secondly the article discusses the issue of men not watching women's sports. Third the article brings up the topic of women’s pro sports leagues being viable. The fourth myth that the article touches on is how title IX is hurting mens sports. The last myth that caught my eye was women’s sports would be more popular if players dressed provocatively.
While reading this article there are few of these myths that really stood out to me considering that I am a woman that happens to be interested in sports as well as the arts. I feel that it is very sexist that viewers only want to watch women’s sports if the female athletes are half dressed. I feel that as a woman in the industry it is important to not only show the world that you can be as great as Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson, but to also leave your mark in a male dominated industry. I feel that women are only looked at as an object rather than a tennis player, soccer player basketball player or just a plain old athlete. I feel that the industry has changed slightly, now when you turn on the TV or happen to be at a game you see women reporting updates from the sideline of the Gridiron or from the locker room. I think that women athletes deserve a fair and equal opportunity in the sports industry.
http://jacksonville.com/news/2015-08-15/story/women-sports-dispelling-some-myths
http://fusion.net/story/183511/top-women-in-sports-2015-serena-williams-ronda-rousey/
http://www.allaccess.com/net-news/archive/story/145229/alliance-for-women-in-media-announce-women-in-spor
Tuesday, August 25, 2015
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