I came across this post from Patrick Beeson and decided to give it a try. I’m really impressed; it makes a tremendous difference in how fast Movable Type runs. Too bad Dreamhost’s MT support is, well, a bit archaic - but oh well …
This might just be the thing that inspires me to get back to it …
I’m getting used to it.
Dear Keith,
No, I don’t want to be an activist anymore either. There are many other ways that I’d rather be spending my time and energy, too.
For instance, I want to take even more beautiful pictures and exhibit them in galleries and museums all around the world. I want to spin house music and classics at parties that exist wherever we are and help people feel a higher high, a spiritual love through dance. I want spend lots of time with my nieces and nephews (and perhaps my own children, someday), teaching them everything that I know and encouraging them to be their own personal best. I want to continue to define and redefine my own personal best and strive toward that vision. I want to luxuriate in the fruits of my labor and revel in my own self-actualization, too.
I have food
I can’t eat
I can’t sleep
I’ve tried to sleep
I can’t sleep
I have to sleep
I need my rest
but I can not rest
yet.
They say it’s presumptuous
to call yourself an artist
or to call yourself brilliant
but I am an artist
and I am one
of the most brilliant people that I know.
That’s why I can’t sleep.
I can’t sleep when I know
that I can make a difference
that I have made a difference
that I can make more of a difference.
I can’t sleep when I know
he’s performing tonight
at fucking Madison Square Garden
while somewhere in another square
someone is begging for help
someone is begging to be saved
someone is begging for her life
someone like me.
I’ve been bashed, too
but we go on.
I haven’t slept much
I don’t like the way I look
I need a haircut
and a shave
and a job
and to clean my house
I am furious
I am shaking as I type this
I don’t like the way I feel
but we go on.
I still want to do my best.
There is a new urgency surrounding the latest episode of a continuing crisis; I’m referring to the videoclips of the recent gay bashings in Jamaica and relating them to Buju Banton’s performance here at Madison Square Garden tomorrow evening. (If you haven’t heard about any of this, please refer to Terrance Heath’s blog.) I am concurrently working on resurrecting my podcast series in order to respond in protest, so be on the lookout for that.
However, the purpose of this particular entry is not to talk about the specifics of that.
I’m writing this at around 4am on Saturday morning. Yesterday I spent most of the day emailing and calling people that I know personally in my community in the hope of garnering a response greater than any that I could undertake by myself. I did not leave Harlem. I started out by making a deposit at my bank to fund my domain renewal and my upcoming global telecommunications. I walked over to Halal Roti Plus (one of the sponsors) in an attempt to engage in a productive dialogue with owner Don Grant. When I arrived, I was greeted with the same poster that I’d previously seen around Harlem promoting tomorrow’s event, but Mr. Grant was away at a doctor’s visit and was not available for comment. I crossed the street to inquire about community relations at the Amsterdam News. I walked back down 125th Street past the Apollo Theater to the Harlem State Building. About a month ago, I ran into the wife of State Senator Bill Perkins at a local restaurant and she encouraged me to physically go and remind the Senator’s chief of staff of some photos I’d taken of them during an event he sponsored this past February in celebration of Black Style Now and Fashion Week. I did just that. His chief of staff gave me her business card as she was leaving the building with the Senator. I took the opportunity also to tell them about Buju’s upcoming performance (and our Internet-based response); she hadn’t heard anything about it and actually thought he wasn’t performing anymore. We continued walking east on 125th Street and relayed to them as much as I could before going back home to organize a bit more. At the end of the day, I ended up conferencing with Tokes Osubu, executive director of Gay Men of African Descent for my podcast. We accomplished that, however, we both agreed that the need is ultimately so much greater than a response to Buju’s latest machinations or to any specific crisis.
It is time, to coin a biblical phrase, to separate the wheat from the tares.
Those of you who read my blog regularly (well, when I blog with any regularity) know I’m pretty up front about some of the more intimate details of my life and my psyche. I guess it feels like sharing, overcoming, bragging … no, more like sharing, but most of the time I can’t help but feel like ultimately I’m shooting myself in the foot.
Life has shown me that there are people out there who really don’t give a shit about me and sometimes it has even been gracious enough to name names - sometimes in bold and underline. I run into these people and they mention reading my blog and relaying what they read as if they’re doing me a favor for the couple of strained moments that we have to exist in the world together. Usually I’m nice about it, questioning their interest and smiling through wishing for the moment to end right along with them so we can each return to our requisite corners of the world as quickly as possible. Sometimes, I cross the street.
It’s official. Welcome to the sixth version of my blog.
Introduction to Polls
One of the reasons I’m blogging again is that it’s so easy to chat with friends around the table about the issues that affect our lives and our world. Polling for your opinion on some of these issues is an extension of that. Start out with this: a poll about polls. Because even though we get stats thrown at us in news as if it’s the Bible, when’s the last time that you or anyone you know participated in a public opinion poll? Over here, polling is unscientific and anonymous. It’s your vote that counts more than anything else.
Cecily Switchs to Photoblogging
She’s focusing on her beautiful photography now.
“I Am Gay”
The New York State Black Gay Network’s impressive campaign for Black gay men’s lives against homophobia in Black communities. It’s chock full of friendly faces like Charly (who I owe several calls, I know), Durrell over at GMHC and Baron. And I’m sure Kenyon had more than a little to do with this.
Jim Crow and “No Fats, No Fems”
Kevin Bynes compares Jim Crow segregation to “no fats, no fems” ideology and an interesting discussion ensues.
Blogging well is really hard work. I define ‘blogging well’ as consistently writing with personal style, intelligence, honesty and wit while also being focused and succinct. And engaging readers, encouraging them to engage each other, and pointing them all to the good shit. And, try as I might to resist the draw of the popularity game, blogging is public expression. The moment you publish that post is exactly the moment you say to the world “Hey everybody, come and read what I wrote! And leave a comment!” Yes, to the whole wide world.
So, for the most part, my blogging hasn’t lived up to my definition of ‘blogging well’ and I apologize. I usually focus on trying some bleeding-edge coding that I’ll spend a lot of time developing to accommodate some difficult design choices, but who really cares about that? It’s time to work on giving y’all what you want, if I can. Stay tuned …
I don’t know Jimi Izrael and am not familiar with his writing. A commemorative stamp of James Baldwin greets you on his home page. He claims some further connection to and/or knowledge of the kids by saying “Oh, I used to DJ for y’all, so I know the T …” but he issued a statement regarding our recent victory against hate-mongerers Beenie Man and TOK that seems to reveal a disconnect rooted in the same rampant patriarchy-laden bullshit that allows virulent hate to fester in both dancehall and hip-hop and instantiate murder.
I’m not really sure what to do with this space anymore. I mean, I’ve never really been sure, but I used to be more inspired to let it be whatever. I wonder now if that was a mistake. For me, it’s not really a matter of popularity or having oodles of comments, it’s about having a particular editorial vision. I don’t have one for this space so I’m going to put it down. I won’t be back unless I can make it hot and deliver an experience.
I’ll be hanging out at a couple of different places:
So, for now, goodbye. Thanks for stopping by.
I know - it has been a while since I’ve blogged. I’m constantly collecting things that I want to share with y’all. For instance, I have SO much audio for my podcast series. I don’t like sharing links unless I can elaborate about why they’re great. And if it’s an event, my goodness, I want to deliver photos, commentary, etc.
Then life goes by, days go by, things happen. Focus shifts. But I promise: I’m coming back, just to give you my love.
It began as a love movement; the shared dream of a husband and wife to help more of the world find its voice. It has since given hundreds of thousands millions of people a substantial tool for sharing their thoughts and for connecting to others. I know there’s probably no real way to quantify this, but here goes: it has inspired developers to create better software while simultaneously challenging the notion that ‘better software’ automatically equals less accessible (and more expensive) software. It’s the content management system that runs the show up in here and the one that I recommend to everyone who asks me. It’s Movable Type. I went from hand-coding my site to LiveJournal to Blogger (and calling it a ‘blog’ like everybody else) to ending up with the cream of the crop.
So, thank you Mena and Ben (and Anil and Brad and Jay and Barak and Loic and Joi and everyone at Six Apart who makes it possible)! Thank you for inspiring me in so many different ways. I’m about to embark on what I believe to be a wonderful new moment in my career as a web designer, but my dream job is still to be speaking Portuguese one day as part of Six Apart Brasil … *sigh!*
