Valentine's Day

It's about that time of year again, Valentine's Day. People go all out for their special someone to show how much they cherish them. My thing is, why wait to show love for your man/woman on V-Day when you should be showing them love year round? Valentine's Day is an excuse for many singles to rent a man or woman for one day and they never see him/her again. That's like spending hundreds of dollars on your senior prom and taking a random girl/guy out for one night knowing you two won't cross paths ever again. It's crazy to me. If I'm going to celebrate Valentine's Day, I have to have a special lady who makes my life better through her existence. This way, I have reason to go all out for her. You're proud of being single all year except for Valentine's Day; that's the one day out of the year you don't want to be alone. You solicit a man or woman to treat to dinner and a movie. If you really want to make an impression, you'll buy Russell Stovers chocolate candy. Buy a woman chocolates and you score major points. I just feel that you should show your mate love year round, not just on their birthday or Valentine's Day. The love shown to your mate on special occasions should be icing on the cake; the culmination of love shown year round.

Politics

It's about that time of year again, the time where presidential candidates travel across the country and solicit votes from citizens. They make promises on what they're going to do once they get into office. Just about every campaign involves mudslinging; candidates airing each other's dirty laundry. It's ridiculous to me because I thought most people grew out of that nonsense but I guess not. Instead of focusing on the issues, the Democrats and Republicans are too busy bickering like clowns. One side doesn't want to bend to the other and vice versa. Look, both sides need to cut this nonsense out and work together to get America back on track. I watched President Obama's State Of The Union address and it was on point. Valid points were made and essentially Obama called out both sides and said that we need to work together to get America back on track. I enjoyed the initiatives he laid out for education, unemployment, job creation, etc.

TV Shows

TV isn't the same as it was in the 80's & 90's. In the 80's and 90's, you had shows like A-Team, Magnum PI, Cosby Show, 227, Martin, Fresh Prince and the list goes on. Nowadays, TV has gone downhill. Everybody and their mama has their own reality show. You can't watch any station without some reality show being on the line-up. I like reality shows just as much as the next person but some shows are just corny. Recently, there was a show that came on WeTV at 9pm Tuesday nights called Downsized. Downsized grew on me quickly because it was REAL. It was about a blended family called the Bruces: Todd was a contractor and Laura was a teacher, they had 7 or 8 children between them. Before the economy crashed, they were living large. As soon as the economy tanked, the Bruce family had to cut back and at one point, the wife considered selling her wedding ring in order to get extra money. The Bruce family suffered one setback after another and I felt for them because no matter what they did, life dealt them one blow after another. Arguments ensued and it looked like they were going to get a divorce but they stuck it out. That show painted a realistic picture of what most couples go through in their relationship when the economy tanks. WeTV didn't renew the show which was stupid because Downsized got very high ratings. Many of my favorite shows came on in the 80's and 90's and after those shows went off the air, I've been hardpressed to find good, quality programming. At least I can watch re-runs on channels 173-174. Another one of my shows was Good Times. I loved that show for the simple fact that it painted the black family in a positive light. No matter what hard times the Evans family faced (believe me, they've had more than their share of hard times), they stuck together. James Evans was that strong black father who kept the family together. He did whatever it took to provide for his family. At times he would get frustrated because for every step forward he took, life would knock him back 2 steps. Most families living in the inner-city could relate to the Evans family. There are very few contemporary shows that I watch; most of the time I watch throwback programming on channels 173-174.



Divorce

Once upon a time, people got married and stayed married for life. Come what may, they were determined not to get a divorce. A couple could be going through the hellish of times but they were determined to stick it out. For marriage vets, they saw hard times as a test to see what their marriage was made of. If they made it through the rough times, they can deal with anything. My hat goes off to all the marriage veterans who have been married for 40+, 50+ and 60+ years. You have marriage legends who have been married for 70 years and up. I read an article about this black couple who has been married 85 YEARS! 85 years of marriage is awesome, it really is. Only God can keep a marriage together that long. The man and woman are in their low 100's. I think what was different with old-school couples and contemporary marriages is that old-school couples understood that marriage is a committment to love each other for better or worse, rich or poor, sickness and health, til death do they part. In today's world, most people give up too quick on their marriages. The first argument they have, one or both parties are ready to sign those papers. Everyone has limits (rightfully so) of what they won't deal with but to split up over minor issues (mostly misunderstandings that can be fixed with clarification) is not that serious. Going further, divorce wouldn't be an issue if couples took their time in getting to know each other. I think a couple should wait at least 3-5 years before they get married. In this manner, they have ample time to get to know one another and if they find out they're not compatible, they call it quits and move on. It doesn't make sense to get married and come to the realization that you two weren't meant to be.

Family Reunions

Family reunions have been in existence for as long as I can remember. Family gets together once a year to find out the happenings and enjoy good food and fun. Some of the greatest memories are from family reunions because you never know when your time is up so it's important to make an effort to spend time with your loved ones. I've been going to family reunions for years; they were fun when I was little but now, I've outgrown them (yes I said it). I love my family but I see them at various points in the year. The best family reunion I went to was Daytona Beach when I was little. Went to the Boardwalk on the beach and had fun all night. My favorite family reunions are in Tyler Perry movies because all the characters look like they have fun being together. Good food & fun, old school music playing...you can't beat that.



The Company You Keep

The less you associate with some people, the more your life will improve. Any time you tolerate mediocrity in others, it increases your mediocrity. An important attribute in successful people is their impatience with negative thinking and negative acting ...people. As you grow, your associates will change. Some of your friends will not want you to go on. They will want you to stay where they are. Friends that don't help you climb will want you to crawl. Your friends will stretch your vision or choke your dream. Those that don't increase you will eventually decrease you. Consider this: Never receive counsel from unproductive people. Never discuss your problems with someone incapable of contributing to the solution, because those who never succeed themselves are always first to tell you how. Not everyone has a right to speak into your life. You are certain to get the worst of the bargain when you exchange ideas with the wrong person. Don't follow anyone who's not going anywhere. With some people you spend an evening: with others you invest it. Be careful where you stop to inquire for directions along the road of life. Wise is the person who fortifies his life with the right friendships. If you run with wolves, you will learn how to howl. But, if you associate with eagles, you will learn how to soar to great heights. "A mirror reflects a man's face, but what he is really like is shown by the kind of friends he chooses."   The simple but true fact of life is that you become like those with whom you closely associate - for the good and the bad.   Note: Be not mistaken. This is applicable to family as well as friends. Yes...do love, appreciate and be thankful for your family, for they will always be your family no matter what. Just know that they are human first and though they are family to you, they may be a friend to someone else and will fit somewhere in the criteria above.   "In Prosperity Our Friends Know Us. In Adversity We Know Our friends." "Never make someone a priority when you are only an option for them." "If you are going to achieve excellence in big things, you develop the habit in little matters. Excellence is not an exception, it is a prevailing attitude..

Movies

I'm a movie buff like nobody's business. I've been going to movies for as long as I can remember and I'm not stopping anytime soon. When a movie comes out, I run to the theater to check it out and usually I'm not disappointed. Of the rare occasion(s) that I see a horrible flick, I make a point not to run out to every movie that drops in theaters. If it's a movie I HAVE to see, I see it immediately. If it's a mediocre movie that has the potential to be good, I'll wait a week after it's released. This weekend I went to see Contraband with Mark Wahlberg and it's a must-see. It's good to see Wahlberg back on the screen because I've been wondering where he's been hiding out lately. I have hundreds of DVDs and that list will only continue to grow. When I don't want to see a movie in theaters, I'll sit home and pop in a DVD; have my own movie night with some popcorn. The first movie theater I started going to was this discount theater in Tallahassee called Movies 8. Back then, movies were $.50 Tuesdays and $1.00 during the week. I still go to Movies 8 from time to time but when megatheaters started popping up in my city, they offered specials so I shifted my business there. There's nothing like going to a movie on Friday night, after you've put in a full day at work and got something to eat. I will return to Friday night movies very shortly but now...I catch flicks during the week because of the weekly discount specials that my two favorite mega theaters offer.