The Makings of a Man

Only Kanye West would have an album cover like this.

Kanye West is ready to celebrate again, but not in the way many come to expect. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is not casually titled. West’s fifth studio album is a sinister, orchestral, hugely pompous affair that owes as much to the artist's self-aggrandizing ego as to the voracious id that would destroy it publicly (yes step your vocabulary up).

Exhibit A: West to album cover portraitist George Condo: "Look, I'm a let you finish, but can you make me look even douchier?"

West is without question a prince among narcissists. He has never been afraid to marvel at, pose questions to, or generally bask in the inner folds of his psyche, but there was only one way to interpret the early message sent by "Runaway." He calls himself an asshole, in the chorus of an epic, piano-driven single. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is filled with similar moments, as if West is working from a checklist of his faults. Workaholic. Commitment-phobe. Loose cannon. Substance abuser.

On "Dark Fantasy," the album's opening track, he raps:

"The plan was to drink until the pain over / But what's worse, the pain or the hangover? / Fresh air, rolling down the window / Too many Urkels on your team, that's why your Wins-low."

See what he did there? Loss becomes win.

My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, West’s rather complex drama -- an extrovert's attempt to invert what's internal -- wouldn't work so well without an equally complicated score, or with one that simply contrasted his increasingly greater vision-of-self against triumphant rant.
This album's production is loud and proud, but also poignant and gripping that always hinting at some looming danger. You can hear it in those tempering first moments -- where Nicki Minaj delivers a cracked fairytale rap over a chorus of angels and demons -- and also in the closer, "Who Will Survive in America," which samples, at length, Gil Scott-Heron oratory about the death of a nation's blind idealism (or perhaps West's).

The tracks in-between is just as dark, twisted, and beautiful. There's "Power," a contemplation on fame and obsolescence that cleverly quotes King Crimson's "21st Century Schizoid Man." "All of the Lights," wrangles everyone from Elton John to Rihanna to help tell a story about a man whose selfishness drives his family away. "Lost in the World," transforms Bon Iver's melancholic "Woods" into a perversely bright experimental dance track. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy is not a flawless album. Too many songs dash around or hover past the six-minute mark. The guest list on posse cuts "Monster" and "So Appalled" could've been pared down. West could've skipped the three-minute solo on "Runaway" altogether.

From the looks of things, West is not claiming to be flawless anymore. He's trying to make a masterpiece. Trying to be honest with us. Trying to be honest with himself. Trying to figure out if he's closer to God or to something else entirely. Far more important than his aim, however, is the fact that he tries at all. The Grammy’s, the platinum packs, the tickets stub from all the arenas he's rocked -- they aren't laurels to be rested on. They're a jagged, unbalanced bed that West could spend a lifetime squirming over, perhaps finding only 60 or so minutes of thorny comfort at a time. That's eternally daunting news for him. But for us, it's a blessing.

Rating: 9 out of 10

As I have gotten older, I have realized the importance of religion. While in undergrad, I was exposed to a variety of other beliefs that I never knew existed. I mean you have Christians, Muslims, Buddhists, atheists, etc. However, one thing that really baffles me is that with all these discrepancies in religions, people still have a hard time admitting that they made an honest mistake.

Admitting that you are not perfect should be a requirement in everyone's life. Perhaps I'm preaching to the choir, but I cannot recall anyone walking this planet as "perfect." As I type this, I think back on some of the mistakes I have made in my life. In particular, during my younger days, I used to think that everything would fall right into place in my life. Boy was I wrong.

Oh my goodness, he's got to be the sickest man in western New York

What intrigued me last night while I was watching SportsCenter was the audacity that one player had to say over a mistake he made. Buffalo Bills wide receiver, Steve Johnson, dropped a potential game-winning touchdown pass in overtime of a game against the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Steelers went on to win the game by a field goal.

Johnson was obviously upset after the drop as well as after the game. He had the audacity to blame God for his mistake. Just when I think I've heard (or in this case read) it all, something is bound to prove otherwise. I'm used to hearing people thanking God after a personal achievement, but to blame Him after a loss? That's absurd. I may be wrong, but I'm not real sure that God is overly concerned with sporting events or played any role in Johnson taking his eyes off the ball. I guess Johnson lives in a consequence-free world where all errors can be blamed on a supreme being. That's like me blaming God for allowing me to fail an accounting test; utter and complete foolishness.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. I know I did. Class, I’ve come to a realization of things. There are times in which enlightenment will hit you in the most random of times. So without further a due, I’ll bring your lesson for today (or at least I’ll try, still high off of turkey [ Tryptophan] here).

Here in the United States, today is a special day: Black Friday. Black Friday is an unofficial holiday, celebrated on the day after Thanksgiving that marks the beginning of the Christmas holiday season. As many of you have heard on the news or online, many retailers open early (often 4am or even earlier) and offer promotional sales to kick-off the shopping season. Virtually every mall, outlet, retail store, etc is witnessing disruptive pedestrian and vehicle traffic in hopes of catching a bargain.

Now these bargains are great to an extent, however, the one issue I have with the Black Friday madness is that retailers only have a few big-draw items available for sale on the day after Turkey Day. So essentially, the promotions hype a shopper up, get their adrenaline going, only to have a crash feeling like how a Red Bull would hours after consumption. Injuries and deaths have also occurred in these human stampedes. All this over a few retail promotional deals. So being the “philosopher of life” that I am, I began to wonder how would things be if we applied the same energy and logic that we use on Black Friday in our personal relationships.

Now granted, I totally understand that Black Friday is about shopping. But hear me out; if we applied the same attention and energy for shopping, that we do in our relationships, we would be happier. For example, prior to Black Friday, you are working on your roadmap of retail stores you will go to. If it is a mall, you are probably drawing your plan of attack either in your head or on paper. When was the last time you have written anything to or about your significant other? When was the last time you have communicated with him/her? I’m not talking about a “what are we eating” or an “I’m just trying to get some sex” conversation. I mean a real, intimate, genuinely honest conversation. Face to face, no texting, BBM’ing or other forms of electronic communication. These advances of technology that help us “communicate” can also hurt the quality of that communication, especially in romantic relationships (I’ll have to discuss communication in another post).

But it strikes me as odd that a couple can stand in line for hours in hopes of getting a new 60” TV for under $2,000, but they can’t even talk about their love for one another for free-ninety-nine. There’s obviously something wrong if a female wants you to spend $129 or more on a new digital camera if she can’t pick up the phone to call and have a simple conversation with you. We live in a materialistic world. A world in which money and material possessions outweigh interpersonal relationships and no-holds barred communication.

I’m not here to judge your actions, but help improve your reactions. So while you are standing in those lines, or even shopping online….I want you to ask yourself: does your relationship have insufficient funds? Just like at your job, you have to work to receive your reward (paycheck), but have you really worked on your relationship lately? Or are you just going through the motions, waiting aimlessly for something (good or bad) to happen? For those in relationships, try to put the same effort you put in shopping into upgrading your relationship…after all, the return lines are longer the day after Christmas than the lines to purchase the products on Black Friday. In other words, the work you put into your relationships now will benefit you in the future, but it is up to you to control what happens in your relationship. Is your relationship like the true meaning of Christmas, or a glorified commercialized item that will be junk in less than two months?

Happy holidays and feel free to comment.

---Class Dismissed

My role model, Henry "Hank" Aaron

I never doubted my ability, but when you hear all your life you're inferior, it makes you wonder if the other guys have something you've never seen before. If they do, I'm still looking for it.---Henry "Hank" Aaron

The gentleman must always remain fully cognizant of what delivered him to the pinnacle of his achievements. He must never lose sight of the skills he was blessed with that enabled him to become successful. It would be terribly negligent for the gentleman to ignore his unique talents and capabilities based solely on the negative opinion of naysayers.

Understand that the aptitude that you display in a particular area may in fact be coveted by other individuals. So, they seek to undermine the very qualities that make you special. They strive to inject poisonous thoughts of self-doubt. They strive to cripple self-esteem with hurtful and destructive language. And even if the gentleman has yet to taste the rewards of success, others may recognize your hidden potential and work tirelessly to shut it down. Don't let them.

The distinguished gentleman is definitely not inferior. Actually, his loudest critics may be suffering from an inferiority complex and is practicing the art of projection. Don't allow their anxiety to become yours. Understand your talents and utilize them to the utmost maximum degree. The same abilities that afforded the gentlemen a level of exactly the ones that will keep him there. Never forget it.



I hope each and every one of you have a safe and Happy Thanksgiving! This will be my seventh year celebrating the holidays without my grandmother. She passed away my senior year of high school and since then, holidays have not been the same.  Nonetheless, I have so much to be thankful for. Enjoy yourselves! :-)

I pride myself in being able to recognize the best in others. I see it as a testament of my taste level. I can’t stress enough the importance of surrounding yourself with energy that supports your goals. Older folks used to say, “You can’t soar with eagles if you’re walking around with chickens.” Unfortunately, I have encountered countless chickens thus far in life.

If there is someone in your life who is a straight up “chicken”, don’t cater to their foolishness, just press the delete button and move the cursor to the next website in your life. You cannot have any offenses or stumbling blocks along your path that do not need to be there. I know it’s hard to leave stuff, trust me, I know.
Sometimes when we hold on to stuff, we delay God from blessing us and it’s a lot like a leech, not helping us at all, just sucking all of the blood and energy within us. Once the leech has gotten what it wants; then it falls off, satisfied with its work.

The same logic can be applied when it comes to helping certain people, its okay to help someone, until it comes to a point where you become drained. God never intends for your helping others to become a burden to yourself.

You have to be careful, even if someone is putting the right stuff on the table, is that what God has called for you at this point in time?

It’s important for we (as humans) to understand the moment, the season, the context in which God has laid us in and who and what to be surrounded by.

I had to learn the hard way that there are some people that you just have to let go of and step aside—because they can obstruct where God is trying to take you. There have been times when I’ve had to separate myself from certain family members, childhood friends, and people in general who brought negative energy into my life. It’s not always easy, but very necessary.

If you know you are the best, it only makes sense for you to surround yourself with the best. NO EXCEPTIONS!

---Class Dismissed

Fitness is not easy. It takes dedication, commitment, hard work, and consistency. Aristotle said:

We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, therefore, is not an act, but a habit.

One of my favorite quotes, because this pertains to all areas of life, including fitness. It is our habits that derail us from reaching our goals. We develop these bad habits, and repeat them subconsciously, to the point that we don’t even realize that these normal day-to-day occurrences hold us back. Talking with a few people recently, I see these common habits that if changed, will yield immediate results and start them on their way to better and fit living. Here are a few easy tweaks to make to improve your nutrition and fitness.

Eat breakfast

If there’s one nutritional hazard that many people have, it’s not eating breakfast. We all know the excuses: "I have no time", "I hate breakfast", "I can wait until lunch", etc. Breakfast, as cliché as it sounds, is the most important meal of the day. It revs your metabolism up, assisting in fat burning/weight loss, and gives you energy to start your day. Now I’m talking about good meals, so don’t swindle this tip for your own benefit. Start off the day right!

Don't skip meals

Another reason why breakfast is so important is because if you go over three hours without eating, your body goes into starvation mode, retaining fat and making it difficult to burn it off. You should eat five or 6 meals a day (the three basic meals and snacks plus smaller meals) to keep your metabolism active.

Weight Train and Cardio Together

Lifting weights can burn three times as many calories as cardio training. You get an afterburn as well. Some people just lift weights. Some just do cardio. Doing both will maximize your results. Period. It might seem like a lot, but seeing your abs for the first time ever, may motivate you to push yourself harder.

These are three easy changes to implement into your schedule. The hardest part is breaking out of your normal habits and making these changes your new habit. Focus and make it happen!

Any tips you have that have worked for you?