Looking For Leaders: NBMBAA & Urban League Hartford

Young Scholars. INROADS. National Black MBA Association. National Urban League.  I owe my career to these organizations.  So while I don't have the time to be as active a member as I was in the past, I look to help out where I can.  Both the NBMBAA and the Urban League's Hartford chapter are looking for new CEOs.  I'm more than happy to pass on the info and hope they snag the best talent available.

See below for details.

Longer Every Day

 
I always wanted to live in nature's sanctuary, a step away from the diversity of urban frenzy.  Too bad Vermont doesn't border Manhattan.  Wealthy tycoons and powerful dignitaries would own my fantasy even if it did exist.  Splurging on city rent is doable, but would keep my pockets a lifetime short of a stable future.

It used to be that suburbia offered the best compromise.  Space was comparatively available and affordable, the city in reach, even if you lost a few more hours in the shuffle.  But as the cost of going to and fro rises in tandem with living anywhere and everywhere, that concrete-front lawn wonderland is feeling more and more like a nightmare stretched thin.

Burbs' Aren't So Cheap - Kvue.com

Commute May Cost More Than You Think - Culpepper Star

Should Home Listings Include Transportation Costs? - Boston.com

Home Buyers Don't Factor in Commuting - Pittsburgh Post Gazette

Fares Are Going Up - Daily Record 

Learning On The Go

Breaking ground often means learning to walk and run at the same time.  Stumbling, in public or private, should be expected and self-forgiven, as virgin territory necessitates more cross roads and road blocks than can be foreseen.  Refusing to acknowledge or learn from our errors deserves no such sympathy.  Venturing into the unknown is often how we learn to tell the difference.

Super Freak In Havana - World Hum

Letting Me Be Great - Very Smart Brothas

SiSe Interview - Nu-Soul Magazine

The Bright Green City / Submit To Mother India - The Sun

Sailor's Bag Makes A Comeback - Esquire UK

"A Good Woman" - A Lesson In True Lies

 
Worn and restless after a night of shouting through NCAA tourney games, I channel-surfed for something punchy enough to hold my attention and long enough to lull me to sleep.  I eventually came across A Good Woman.  The frilly 1930s Euro-American romantic wasn't an immediate first choice, but it met the requirements:  Scarlett Johnansson provides enough punch wherever, however, in whatever.  And at worst, lengthy old-English discourse is as good as a pillow and some Compoz.

I watched. I laughed. I made it through the whole thing.  The inter-generational exchanges between men regarding the opposite sex drew some gems:

On Infidelity:  "I find the best way to keep my word is never to give it."

Marriage:  "You know why they call it the alter Tommy?  Because it's where they make human sacrifices."

Listening: "9 times out of 10 men don't give two pence about why.  They just feel obliged to seem so."

The "One": "Devilish women are a bother.  The good ones are a bore.  That's the only difference."

 Words to live by.  And to be used sparingly.

It's Nice Outside

I had every intention of updating this blog daily.  I even followed through for a bit.  Then it started getting warm outside.  It's 60-plus degrees and I would rather be outdoors.  I'll write on what I see when I feel.  Daily posts on hold til' fall.

The Politics of Age

Ben Jealous looks to bridge the preservation of old sentiments and progress of modern reality at Uptown.

Brother's Keeper

The greatest gift you can pass on is confidence.

My Father has it.  He puts family first and integrity before all else.  He gives of himself till there's no more left to give.  Then he gives some more.

He taught me that a real man is bigger than himself.

My Uncle has it.  He's at ease with, but aware of, a gentleman or a ruffian.  Equally adept with a wardrobe or a wrench.  An everyman who can talk the talk with all walks of life, but is quick to chin check anyone who oversteps their bounds.

He taught me that a real man is prepared.

Direction

If you have your own direction in mind - or no direction in particular - be choosy of whose advice you follow.  Lift a weary eye to those who say you aren't capable; their self-induced  limitations will become your own.  Borrow optimism from those who say sky is the limit, but make sure you have an anchor to ground you in reality.  Be forever grateful of those who ask where you'd like to go first, then proceed to point you in the right direction the best they know how.  Above all, make sure to listen to all that is said.  It will give you the power to pave your own path, and knowledge to know where it leads.

What 50 Feels Like

Laugh a little.  At Keith's Space.

Call Me Smitten

Phallyn Espinoza.  More at Indo's Place.

The End Of "I Digress"

"I digress," especially when preluded by a "but," may be the most overused term in modern Western commentary.  We've become saturated in op-ed digressions, diluting the phrase to the point of indifference.  Find some room in the back of your closet.  Put it in storage.  Burn it.  Forget you ever had it. Whatever you do, don't wear it in public.   It went out of style years ago.

Too Old For This

4/20 went up in smoke with your rap career.  The velours of teenage glory make you look like you're fishing for jailbait.  Your offspring have a knack for serving your soul on a platter.  You are geting older.  Enjoy it. You are where you're supposed to be.  And life doesn't get much better than this.


The Reader I Want - Atlantic

Getting Over The Glory Days - Art Of Manliness

Things You Should Give Up At Age 30 - Very Smart Brothas

Ridiculous Tips For A Miserable Sex Life - Nerve

Men's Ties: Not Just For Cubicles And Church - Men's Playbook

Son Outperforms Dad - Better Than A Beatdown

Myth of The Middle Class Alpha Male

Interesting series from The Rawness. Apparently, men whose statuses fall somewhere between "nothing to lose" and "too much to care" are particular in how they establish social dominance.  It's healthy food for thought, if the writing doesn't exhaust you first.  Most of the site's articles, "dedicated to observing and analyzing human behavior and the nature of social interactions,"  are written in the style of a long-winded academic dissertation.  But well thought out, universal concepts make it worthwhile for a patient reader.


The Myth of The Alpha Middle Class Alpha Male, Part 1

The Myth of The Alpha Middle Class Alpha Male, Part 2

The Myth of The Alpha Middle Class Alpha Male, Part 3

The Myth of The Alpha Middle Class Alpha Male, Part 3.5

The Myth of The Alpha Middle Class Alpha Male, Interlude

The Myth of The Alpha Middle Class Alpha Male, Part 4

Some Kick With Your Coffee

Day-to-day resolve for work-life balance does exist.   The Spanish have siesta. Italians have a glass of wine.  Americans have conditions.  Most of the -ics and -isms tied to work, booze, sex, or mental status can by cured by finding a happy medium.  There is a drink of choice for hump days you don't want to start, empty office holidays you can't wait out, and vacations you've yet to recuperate from.   Order your usual coffee with a shot of whiskey, or an "Irish Coffee" if you're at a diner or bar.  It's easy-going energy that loosens tensions while maintaining focus.  Just limit them to one at a time, once a week (if that), but never more; there's an -ism for that.

Next Top Something: Where Everyone's A Winner

Reality TV competitions were once a meeting place for raw talent, professional channels, and general audiences who couldn't otherwise access each other.  Somewhere along the line they were replaced with washed-up celebrities, amateurs without a shot in hell in the real world, and, worse yet, the inexperienced pitted against pros by association (since when are dance-offs between game show hosts and pop stars who danced for a living considered competition?).   The new train wrecks continue to bring in similar ratings as the old dramas and sitcoms at a fraction of the cost.  And so continues the dumbing down of the American public.  At $300, the Kindle suddenly feels like a bargain.


This Is The Last Good Season of American Idol - True/Slant

Kabul Makeover - The Atlantic 

Like... The Best Competition Ever - Tweet & Velvet

Can Evan Lysacek win that elusive Emmy? - LA Times

How To Stop Survivor From Becoming America's Reality - Esquire

Old Is New Again

Five style blogs. One theme.


Mil Spec Tees - A Time To Get

Spring Must Have Accessories - Tweed & Velvet

Oscar Style Lifetime Achievers - GQ

The Love of Neckties - Gentleman's Standard

The Classic - Kempt

Tis' The Season

Spring is coming.  Think I've found my first pair of all-whites.


Details at Hypebeast.

Source of Income

Job hunting? Get this book. It will refresh what you forgot you know and introduce the stuff you don't. The source matters most. Job boards bring competitors in and recruiters work to funnel resumes out, not in. Hiring managers pay the closest attention to ability, motivations, and intangibles. Get to know them first.

Listen. Learn. Reproduce.

Men Don't Take Hints Very Well - Three Ways To Take It

12 New Facts About Women, 13 New Sex Secrets Men Don't Know - Esquire

How To Know If Your Woman Is Sleeping...WITH ME! - Undressing Her

Beware The Sperm Jacker - AskMen

Guys Are Easy If You Smile - Naked With Socks On

Fader Roundup 3/2/10

Where We Are The World meets Clubland.


"Mugwanti / Sqwejegweje" + Schlachthofbronx Remix - DJ Mujava

"Glitch Feisty Rub" -  Emvee ft. Bonjay

"Freak" - Estelle ft. Kardinal Offishall

"Starry Eyed" - Ellie Goulding

"Tipsy" - DJ Webstar ft. Serani & Jadakiss

Power, Influence, & The Pursuit of Happiness

If you make it a point to master any one skill, make it idle chit-chat.  It'll do wonders for your social life and  professional aspirations.  I do most of mine where solo idlers congregate. The most successful and content of those I've met shared some things in common. They smile like the sun, don't mind a little dirt, and never let their optimisms fade into the horizon.  They are focused to a fault, on this earth to do what they do, and derive equal joy from work, leisure, and their outcomes.  They acknowledge rules and mores apply to them, but operate under the terms of their own universe.  And whether the world applauds or criticizes, it still looks to them for example.


People in Power -  Monocle

Is Obama Tough Enough? - Economist

Ford Drops Out of Senate Race - New York

10 Ways To Win An Oscar - Daily Beast

The Importance of Knowing How To Delegate - Art Of Manliness

Regina King on Boondocks - Black Voices

Shareholders Slam Apple's Environmental Initiatives - Good

Rethinking History

Black History Month passed without much fanfare around these parts.  I've yet to decide whether I should feel guilty.  Like Mother's Day or Valentine's Day, I've always seen it as a 24/7 agenda, not something to be lost and found one month per year.  But truth be told, today's a good day as any to ground, expand, and explore knowledge of self .  The links I did find weren't the most encouraging,  but they do trigger thought.  I imagine it's the reason February was put on reserve in the first place.


Art of Discomfort [Intelligent Life]

The Mysterious Inspiration of Lead Belly [BigThink]

Black History Month [Aliya S. King]

Mexico's Hidden Blacks [Intelligent Life]

Beg, Borrow, Or Steal: 7 Things Black Folks Might Lose If We're Not Careful [Very Smart Brothas]