Hey Cybernistas.  Come on it, take off ur cool. 


Can you believe it is almost November?  I can't, but I do turn 30 next month.  My birthday is November 19th.  I have absolutely no idea what I am going to do to celebrate.  Since it is less than a month away and I have yet to start planning anything, it will probably be a whopping NOTHING.  Let me know what you did to celebrate your big 3-0.  Maybe I can bite off of your ideas.

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This past weekend I did not go to Columbia.  Many of the folks that I hoped would attend couldn't make it for one reason or another so I hung out in the Lou.  It's so hard to round up all your college crew for a weekend b/c everyone is all scattered around doing their career-thing.  I'm not mad, but we must get together soon!

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I did get to experience a bit of Mizzou nostalgia at a wedding I attended last Saturday.

  Miss Chantelle Fluker (now Evans) had a beautiful wedding at Ameristar casino .

(I didn't even know they had the facilities to host a wedding  but they do and it was beautiful).  Of course everyone trickled down to the casino when it was over.  I didn't b/c I am not into giving away money, but to each his own. 

There were quite a few familiar faces from MU at the wedding.  None that I was ever hella cool with, but familiar nonetheless.  It was cool to see everyone again, and see how everyone has changed, and whatnot.

So best wishes to Chantelle and Chris Evans as they embark on their new lifelong journey together.  He goes to Iraq in a couple of months so keep him in your prayers.  Also, Chantelle planned her own wedding, Weddings by Lareese, is her business name.  So if you are looking for a wedding planner, holla at ur girl and I can get you the info.

My friend Regina was in the wedding, so I kicked it with her quite a bit at the bachelorette party and wedding.  It was good to get to see her and hang out b/c it has been a while.  We have this ongoing joke that everyone says that her and her husband look like me and my husband.  I guess it's true, people feel most comfortable around those who look like them???

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So in my personal life, I have turned over a new leaf.  I am going to try to go the Noble route instead of the wish-creed route.  Instead of walking around with the I wish a mutha*** would *** with me philosophy, I'm just going to go by the "whatever it is, let it be" creed.  It has really been working well for me.  I just started this last week and it is challenging but I refuse to let anyone upset me.  That is my decision and my decision alone.  I have really been putting it to use when dealing with my "other half" at the crib.  We get on each other's nerves all the time, and I'm not going to argue about who didn't hang something up, or who washed dishes, or who left the light on or any other trivial crap.  It's just now worth it.  I'll have to keep you posted on my progress.  My biggest fear is that I play this noble-girl role for a month and then on week 5 I blow the hell up and just unleash brining up all the crap that I wished I had commented on over the past month and really mess things up.  So please send positive energy my way.  I will just try to keep telling myself, cooler heads prevail!   Remember...He who angers you controls you...and all that good stuff.

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Speaking of not letting other people control your emotions: Tonight at the Missouri History Musuem Jabari Aasim, author of  "The N Word: Who Can Say It, Who shouldn't, and Why," will discuss national and local issues regarding using derogatory language and its impact.  This should be quite the interesting discussion.  Of course there will be a book signing after the discussion.  Books are available for purchase in the MO History museum's shop.  The Mo History Museum is located in Forest Park.  The event is free to attend and will be held tonight from 6-8pm. 

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One of my old English professors, Clenora Hudson-Weems, used to do a hellified presentation on the history of the N-bomb, how it was a positive term based on the latin origin of the word which means black.  The term didn't originate as a racial slur but over time was converted into a derogatory comment as recent as the last couple hundred years.  She also talks about how black people have reclaimed it and have chosen to convert it back to its original form of endearment.  I know she would be pissed at me now for writing this b/c she specifically instructed us to not retell this information, and if anyone wanted to know about it they needed to contact her directly because (and I quote) "nobody is going to be able to explain it better than me and you are just going to sound crazy" but oh well, I guess I'm hard headed. 

Look up Clenora, she's all over the web.  She is definitely known for her book and research regarding the death of Emmit Till and how that act (instead of Rosa Parks) was the true catalyst to the civil rights movement.  Rosa Parks was chosen to go down in American history as the catalyst b/c it was much more acceptable for a lil' lady too tired to give up her seat as opposed to a child from Chicago, visiting his family in Mississippi, who made the mistake of whistling at a pretty caucasion lady, Carolyn Bryant, and later was kidnapped from bed in the middle of the night from the home of his relatives, brutally tortured, mutilated and murdered by several men in Money, MS.  I do believe he was only 14.  It's really something, so learn your history.  It's not just black history, the last time I checked Mississippi was in America, so it's American history.

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Obama to visit St. Louis this Friday.

Obama will be in St. Louis this Friday at the Union Station South Parking Lot for a fundraising campaign event. Recently, Obama has been receiving backlash from gay rights groups urging Obama to sever his ties with gospel singer, Donnie McClurkin. The gay rights groups are upset because McClurkin is spreading "false information" regarding homosexuality being a choice. McClurkin has been quoted as saying in interviews that: "I don't believe that it is the intention of God, Sexuality, everything is a matter of choice." He was also quoted as saying he does not believe in discriminating against homosexuals and... "What people do in their bedrooms and who they are as human beings are two different things."

Donnie McClurkin is among several gospel   singers scheduled to raise money for the Illinois senator and Democratic presidential candidate at a concert in South Carolina this weekend. According to the Post Dispatch,in a statement, Obama said he believes gays and lesbians are "our brothers and sisters" and should be afforded the same respect, dignity and rights granted all other citizens.

McClurkin is a Grammy Award winner who performed at the Republican National Convention in 2004. At that time McClurkin admitted he was "once involved with those [homosexual] desires and those thoughts," which he attributed to being raped at 8 and 13. "That's what thrust me into it, and then God delivered me from that and gave me back who I really am and my true purpose," McClurkin said. To date, Obama hasn't confirmed whether or not McClurkin will still take part in the concert this weekend.

Is Obama dancing with fire? I mean realistically speaking, first he is definitely eliminating the religious rights vote by embracing homosexuality and then he turns around and pisses off gay rights folks too. That's going to be a hard one to swallow  (no pun intended...teeheehee) src="http://images.bravenet.com/common/images/smilies/17_wink.gif">

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So you all know that St. Louis is a hotbed that birthed many of our greatest musicians.

One in particular, Chuck Berry, will be performing next weekend, Nov. 3rd at the Argosy Casino.  My folks, Ma'at, reported that this may be his last performance.  I think it is fitting that Berry is performing at the Casino b/c he has been spotted on many occasions hanging in the high rollers level (the level us broke folks can't get to unless we know someone that has it like that and invites us up to eat and drink off of all of their comps).  He is difficult to spot, to the unknowing eye, but just keep an eye out for a sailors cap (I think that's his good luck charm) and yep, that's him, ol C.B. in the flesh.

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The word is out for all you Cardinal fans.  Tony La Russa is back.
 
The Cardinals announced yesterday that the most successful manager in the Cardinals franchise history, La Russa, 63, will return to manage his 13th season in 2008. La Russa agreed to a two-year contract to remain as the club’s manager.

Much uncertainty surrounded La Russa's return coupled with the Cards absence of a general manager.  It looks like the Cards expect to have a new general manger by the end of the 2007 World Series.  

At yesterday's press conference La Russa admitted that the lack of a new GM made him uneasy but focusing on the relationships he has built with his players helped him come to his final decision.

It was origianlly rumored that La Russa was a candidate for the NY Yankees vacant manager position.  But it turns out La Russa never had any conversations with the Yanks to that effect.

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When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong

In more St. Louis sporting news, St. Louis Rams offensive lineman Claude Terrell was arrested early Tuesday morning in Webster, TX, charged with assault-family violence.  As of this afternoon, Terrell has been released from the Ram's team.  But I hate when my intelligence is insulted.  According to Jay Zygmunt, Ram's president and GM, "He was released for performance on the field, and just because of how he was playing. This has been contemplated for a while.

So what you all just so happened to decide to come to a decision to cut this guy while his is coincidently still being processed in the Harris County (Texas) Jail.  Just keep it real.  He was already a headache and this was the straw. 

It looks like the law was called out to the Hampton Inn about 2 a.m. (somebody went to Martinit Mondays...teeheehee) b/c of a disturbance.  The officers said a female victim was there who had obvious signs of physical injury.  It later came out that this victim was Terrell's wife. I hate doing this because the media can paint an unclear picture of a person very easily but it is reported that Terrell was currently on probation from a 2006 assault charge stemming from an altercation resulting in bodily injury to one of his family members.  That is kind of gray, I wanted more facts about what happened.  He was arrested today and released today. 

But what I do know is where you clown at is where you get it at.  You had no business putting your hand on that woman.  Now if she did the "A Thin Line Between Love and Hate" move and socked herself in the nose with an orange then said you did it, that's messed up but I highly doubt it.  There are three sides to every story.  His side, her side, and the truth.  The later, only God knows. 

The NFL needs to debrief these big azz, testosterone filled, men who make a living out of pounding on people.  Hell, he might have thought he was still in a game...teeheehee.  He is starting against Cleveland on Sunday (well was starting).  He might have saw her out the corner of his eye and thought she looked like Jamal Lewis and just tackled her.


I'm curious to know who will start against Cleveland this weekend because Terrell was only starting because of ankle injuries to Brett Romberg. So how deep does the Rams roster go?  But with Bulger and Jackson trying to limp back into the lineup, who knows.  Hot azz mess for real.

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So "W" (yall's president) was scheduled to come to St. Louis this Thursday to tour World Wide Technology, Inc. and attend a private fundraiser for the Republican National Committee at a St. Louis residence this Thursday.  Well word just came out that he is sending  Vice President Dick Cheney instead.

 Now here is the kicker, WWT, inc. is a mogul when it comes to systems integtation and providing technology and supply chain solutions to customers and suppliers around the world.  Most of their clients are with the federal government or fortune 500 companies.  I know about this company b/c we featured it in our business section when I was the editor at  a now defunct local STL publication.  This company is black owned.  It has only been operating since 1990 and last year they revenued over 2 billion dollars.  And they are based in the  little old Maryland Heights township of St. Louis. 

What do you all want to bet that "W" found out he was coming to meet a brother so he decided he would rather go and "comfort the victims of the California wildfires and let them know firsthand that they are in the nation's hearts and prayers.''  Am I tripping, or was this fool on vacation fishing for a whole dayum week when people were stranded without food, water, electricity, etc. for a whole dayum week in New Orleans.  I just know one thing, if he gets on camera and pats the FEMA guy on the back and says  "You're doing a hellavu job..." that fema guy may as well pack his bags.  You're doing a hellavu job = If the ish hits the fan, you''e taking the fall dude.

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  Don't forget to check out Got Lyrics tonight.  It's back. 




Smooches.