plant seeds for growth...

one minute I’m walking out of the bar, headed to game one of the Padres – Giants season series finale and the next minute I run into the Black Scale guys on the Lane. Next thing I know I’m grinning and on my way. They instruct me to catch either the 30 or the 45 bus but both of those are way too crowded for me and besides it’s a perfect October night in the city so I proceed to walk dizzily towards the ball park.

on the corner – At the intersection of 3rd St. and Willie Mays Plaza a young Brotha with no more than 12 to 13 years of earthly existence under his belt shouts out as I walk by “sunflower seeds only one dollar, five dollars inside the park!” Sold! I stop dig into my pocket and boom the seeds are mine. His partners next to him with only half his hustle start to harass me, hoping that I’ll buy their peanuts and red vines, not happenin’. I give them both a hard stare that says... naw son, leave me alone. They insist so I verbalize it and confirm with a head shake, no! I shake my guys hand and tell him good lookin’ out, he says to me good lookin’ out but has a confused look on his face and probably thought, why did this old (in his eyes) playa thank me?!

Seeds in hand I make my way halfway across the street and get stopped by what seemed like a very short crossing signal???

“Alright, I’m goin’ ” Short light, yes. Intentional, I believe so. My God slapped me in the back of the head to remind me that I had some work to do. I turn around and head back towards the young business man and his slacking comrades. The three of them spot me coming, the slackers have a look like yeah B*tch, I knew you would be back for these red vines and nuts for your mouth. Wrong dummies! If it had been a wear two belts today Friday I might have taken one off and given those two a whoopin'!

PS: Yo man, do you know why I said good lookin’ out?
YB: ummmm yeah, wait - no.

Attn: for you slower readers and you know who you are, YB stands for Young Brotha.
Forgive me I shouldn’t say slower readers; I should say those not as literally inclined. But otherwise you, the same dude that was always slowin’ down the flow when we had to read out loud in elementary.
Now get it together and lets get Back to the movie…

PS: I said good lookin' out and then you said good lookin’ out and that’s not it.
YB: (confused)
PS: Let me explain to you
YB: OK (with a perplexed look on his face)
PS: When I was walking by you yelled out “sunflower seeds ONLY $1 dollar” and how much did you tell me they were inside.
YB: Five dollars
PS: Exactly, I said to you after I bought them, “good lookin’ out” because you did two things. You gave me information that #1. saved me money and #2. saved me from waiting in a long ass line inside the stadium

I have his attention and anticipate the smile that is inevitable once we’re finished. Now my goal is to get him to change his energy which I feel will change his approach towards the hustle and have a positive impact on his overall success.

PS: Let me explain to you brotha, you are saving people time and money. We live in a country that lives off the claim that time is money. You are saving people both. By telling me your prices versus the prices inside you saved me four dollars. Because you are accessible on this street corner you saved me time, those lines inside can take forever
YB: ohhhh (smiling from ear to ear)
PS: You are providing a great service and should be proud of what you are doing
YB: Thank you (now unsure if it is ok to be thanking me)
PS: (Laughing) I do have a favor though, when you’re my age I don’t want to see you out here hustlin’ seeds or tickets (pointing at ticket scalpers a few yards away) Instead of selling seeds and tickets you should know that you have the ability and obviously the work ethic to own the business (pointing to stadium) that they are scalping tickets for!

YB: (huge grin) Yeah!

We shake hands again and again I say…

PS: so good lookin’ out!
YB: Fa sho

I felt like giving the YB a hug or something but I saw the slackers watching and ear hustling and that “soft” gesture might have gotten me robbed, LOL! I thought to myself, self maybe you should have invited them over to listen and learn. Naw, he can share the information with them and they can learn to follow his lead, making for one chief and two Indians!!!

The End,
PS1

can't knock the hustle...

Narcissistic – an adjective describing one that has an inordinate fascination with him or herself; excessive self-love; vanity.

Arrogant – adjective; making claims or pretensions to superior importance or rights; overbearingly assuming; insolently proud.

On July 1st, 2010 Lebron James arguably the greatest basketball player over the past few seasons in the NBA became eligible for free agency. For those that are not familiar, a free agent is a player that is no longer bound or obligated to any contract or restrictions. Most basketball fans had been hearing about the summer of 2010 for years as everyone in and around the sport knew that there would be an all out bidding war for the talents of Lebron James, Dwayne Wade, Chris Bosh, Amar’e Stoudemire and a few other notable players in the league. The first day that these players would be eligible to sign was July 8th.

July 8th, 2010 during prime time on the east coast Lebron James appears on a sixty minute ESPN special to announce where he would be playing basketball next season. Actually he announced where he would be taking his talents! The outrage, riots and outburst by fans and current Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert has been incredible to say the least. Facebook and Twitter have been heavily bombarded with insults and derogatory remarks since the press conference where James announced he would play alongside his good friends Chris Bosh and Dwayne Wade in South Beach Miami next season for the Heat. I was excited to hear about James choosing Miami to join those other players next season. Basketball is my favorite sport and NBA basketball is a lot different than high school and college hoops. The NBA is more of a stand around and watch one guy play one on one basketball against another guy, hardly a team sport in my opinion. For that reason I choose not to watch the game on a regular basis. Add in Tim Donaghy, an NBA referee sentenced to 15 months in prison for fixing games and you’ve got a real recipe for disaster and game endings that are more often than not controlled by those officials. Donaghy wrote a tell-all book but it was never published, do you ever wonder why.

Joy – Sunday mornings this winter will not be the same for me. I am excited and filled with happiness to turn on my television, pour some tea and watch James, Wade and Bosh do their thing. Maybe it will spark the return of team ball? Maybe it will make other star players want to play together and they can collectively re-invent professional team basketball? Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and Ray Allen did it in Boston and won a championship a few years ago. Before Wade, Bosh and James decided that they would play together there was a rumor circulating that the only way this deal would be possible was if ownership in the team was made available to them. NBA Commissioner David Stern very swiftly put that to rest saying that it wouldn’t happen. Nonetheless I was so happy to hear that those young brothas have their heads moving in that direction. Besides with Pat Riley in the mix, who knows what kind of future arrangements were worked out on the back end?! Raise the bar young men and let future generations know that just because you run fast and jump high doesn’t mean that you aren’t interested in ownership. Shout it loud and proud so that future generations can hear you and so that they know what to ask for and are able to receive double of what you got.

Magic Johnson has been in the press lately speaking on the Miami ordeal. Magic was one of my favorite players as a child went on record saying that he spent most of his life trying to figure out how to beat Larry Bird, a rival he battled in college and on the pro level. Magic said he never considered playing with Bird because he could only think about ways to beat him. He did say that the current trend seems to be one of star players aligning with each other in order to win games and eventually championships like Kobe and Gasol did in LA and like Garnett, Pierce and Allen did in Boston. Johnson asked why shouldn’t Lebron, Wade and Bosh play together given that is the current trend in the NBA. Makes sense to me Magic! And thank you for understanding and not just passing judgments like so many others have done over the past few weeks.

Sadness – leading up to Lebron’s press conference on ESPN the people near me seemed angry. I was puzzled because I thought it was so fresh that a young brotha from the inner city, that grew up in a single parent household could have the nation on pins and needles waiting to hear where he would play a game. The US President even got involved and lobbied for James to play in his hometown of Chicago. I heard words like arrogant and narcissistic? Really? How, why? Please see the definitions above and help me understand how a young entrepreneur is wrong for capitalizing in a capitalistic society. A player hater is somebody that hates the player instead of the game.

Lebron said some very powerful words when people asked him why he was leaving Cleveland, he said eventually I would have left or they would have asked me to leave anyway. Byron Scott was fired in New Orleans last year after being nothing but a winner and previously taking the lowly New Jersey Nets to the NBA championship. Avery Johnson was fired in Dallas after taking the Mavericks to the NBA championship and winning coach of the year in 2006. There are many coaches in the NBA that keep jobs and have never won, never. Why aren’t they fired, why are they still coaching? Sadness comes from the people not seeing what is happening in and around them. Joy comes from young brothas like Lebron saying I will do what I want and where I want to do it and even better I played by your rules! I will co-sign and say there is almost nothing better than being a master of your time. Dan Gilbert of the Cavaliers is upset because he can no longer make money off Lebron. I hear people saying that athletes make too much money; do the owners make too much money as well? FYI they make more than the players that actually do the work, sore knees and all.

Joy must be experienced when you are young, rich and handsome and living in South Beach Miami! Joy must be experienced when you can hold a press conference and stop the lives of many to notify them of where you will be working next year. Joy must be experienced when your former boss accuses you of quitting in the playoffs but still wants you to play on his team. Joy is definitely experienced when you are able to fulfill your promise of buying your single parent mother a house once you “make it”.

Lebron James is known to be good friends with Hip-Hop mogul and rapper Jay-Z. Jay-Z is also a minority owner in the New Jersey Nets NBA team. As a teenager I loved a rapper by the name of Ice Cube, one of his lines was “Stop givin’ juice to the Raiders, cause Al Davis never paid us” this was in response to his rap group wearing Raiders apparel on stage and in music videos. Maybe Jay-Z is Lebron’s Ice Cube, maybe Jay has helped to enlighten his young friend and aspiring team owner?

Dear young ballers and potential stadium fillers, get your education, know your worth and drop them to their knees!

Dear Owners, time to pay up because now the young athletes and children that fill your stadiums, arenas and coliseums want what is owed to them! Hopefully Michael Jordan is only the first and not the last African-American NBA team owner?!

Good luck in Miami, I’ll be watching often!!!

Peace,
PS1

en mi opinion...

* Everyone that knows who Michael Vick is should know who Ben Roethlisberger is.

* Party's after a holiday weekend are lots o' fun! The warriors are exhausted...

* The slower you move then the longer it takes you...

* Peace on Earth - some factions just need to die off...

* Trains that stop running before the bars close encourage drinking and driving.

* Entering into Holy Matrimony before 25 should seriously be outlawed!

* You gotta admit that baseball post steroids isn't nearly as exciting?!

* Oil issues often surface before the Summer travel season...

* Pakistan is up to bat!

* Hey Korea, you're on deck?!

* Go in agenda free and let it be!

* If you stay ready, you never have to get ready.

* Hey Parents! You HATE it and your kids will LOVE it!!!

Peace, PS1

Exodus 20:

thou shalt not... frightening to some and to others merely words, less traveled and least explored.
To everyone connected or at least partially tuned in to the outside world as of late I'm sure you are well aware of The Tiger Woods Saga. You've heard the voice mail messages, you've seen the "traffic accident" images and have heard opinions from sportswriters, news anchors, and the assorted bunch. As I write this passage I find it ironic that I'm watching last nights broadcast of the George Lopez show where the funniest Mexican Dude on television has a few minutes worth of Tiger jokes and is landing jab after jab on the poor fella!

Initial reactions - I am a sports lover. I live for competition! en mi opinion, winning and losing helps us to discover who and what we are. I love waking up every morning and watching highlights of my favorite players scoring a winning goal, slam dunk on Chris Bosh and scream at him Paul Pierce, Chad Ochocinco do that dance, pay that bribe to the referee. That is the thrill, the rush you get from competition. Those are some of the things that attract/draw us to our favorite sports "celebrities".
Over the last week or two ESPN, the network my TV set is usually locked on has been talking Tiger almost to a point of frustration. I mean what's the big deal with a guy having a car accident in his own yard? Why in a down economy is the state of Florida spending so much time and money on this? I mean are we really that bored, lonely, or comfortably miserable in our own existence that auto accidents are news worthy? Or did they actually know something that we didn't, something they thought we may or may not care about?

Phase 2 - Tuesday AM. I wake up to ESPN, business as usual. Tiger is apologizing thru his website which is now being broadcast over the air. The journalists are eating it up. The news stations are loving it and Facebookers aka those at work that ain't workin' are taking moments to add their 3 to 5 cents in. I figured damn Le Tigre, say it ain't so. I mean you're a corny brotha, a smooth ass golf playing, Ivy league type that I wouldn't mind my future child admiring or looking up to. Why are you on TV apologizing to "us" for a car accident and why are you confessing your sins to the nation. F*ck "us" get on your knees and talk to the big homey. He or she is the only one that can help you now. Other professional athletes are now taking shots at you, funny how quickly they turn on you huh?
A couple hours go by and now the word is out. The side chicks, you know the ones you met on the road in LA, NY, Vegas etc. are now showing their faces and why? To add to your misery and to see if they can make a few dollars (of course her book will be coming soon). And damn, they look so good! I mean they should right? They are talent for hire, the finest chick in Kissmycousin, Arkansas needs to escape to Hollywood to be in entertainment right? LA, the city where one of your chicks resides is full of them! I know, I lived there almost four years. Most are talentless, typically pretty, short on cash, and the overall down for WHATEVER types! So now she drops the tape and its all over the internet and television. Yes that tape, you know the one that you made the worst non-playa move ever on! I heard it and it went something like this, "Ummmm please erase your name off the voice mail message" so when my wife calls you I can still try and argue my way out of this bullsh*t! El Tigre, B+ for effort, F for performance.

Tiger, you're not a player buddy! Please return your card to the rightful owners.

The Fade - in an effort to keep this short and sweet, especially because many of you reading this are at work and should be, well you know! Let me leave you with an easy set of solutions should you ever end up on either side of the Tiger, Clinton, Jordan, or Angelina Jolie house.

1. Ask yourselves, what am I doing or NOT doing that would make my mate feel ok (internally) with stepping outside of our Holy Union?

2. And then ask, I know this person is a ________ and is very highly sought after, should he/she be approached by, tramp on the road, Governor Spitzer, Monica Lewinsky, handsome six pack abs brotha from the handsome hunks calendar and decides to indulge, would I be okay with that? If your very immediate answer is no, then aim for someone closer to your range. Understand and accept that there is a price that COULD possibly come with dating/marrying "public figures". (Price = they may get a little on the side when they think you're not lookin')Unless you both have an equally matching swag, it's probably going to end up in disaster!

3. At the end of the day understand that time spent on Earth is short and that the Penguin is the only animal on the planet that keeps its mate for life (they only actually live together for mating and babysitting purposes, about half the year). The decisions that we make we have to live with and more importantly depending on your belief system you will one day have to justify the decisions and choices made before the man/woman upstairs. Think about that before that third glass of wine makes it easy for you to take your married a*s up the elevator to somebody's hotel room.

Steve McNair - R.I.P

My Thoughts, My World
PS1

say it ain’t so...

- Skinny jeans make me worry, like a Grandma does…
- once upon a time I saw a documentary called American Mullet!
- record stores are all but gone?
- China is celebrating its 60th year of Communist rule!
- Nike re-signed Michael Vick…
- Entourage season 6 has been real and sadly is almost over…
- metal cars use more gas, but are way cooler!
- the most comfortable shoes are usually not as fresh…
- some think the corporations are destroying the music?
- real sugar will not hurt you as bad as the replacements…
- within some sub-cultures lady arm pit hair is considered sexy…
- Nike denies re-signing Michael Vick but will seed him with product?
- U.S. troops are training recruits in Afghanistan for the Afghan National Army...
- Sportscenter es no bueno during Hockey season!

PS1

little mikey...

They used to tell him he could do it since he was a Kid
Evan told him that he could be the biggest Kid
Its so weird that he never really was a Kid
And Kid did what other kids never did whatever Kid
Real Kid paid close attention
And genius asked question after long question
And his profession was somehow a sorted lesson
It's God's gift be on your way with God's bless in...

PS1

en mi opinion...

* Sooner or later somebody is gonna kick Kanye’s ass! I haven’t checked Taylor Swift’s police record yet but maybe she should do it!
* The Chargers are idiots for getting rid of Drew Brees!
* Boise St. Linebacker Byron Hout got knocked out with one punch on national television for taunting LeGarrette Blount following an Oregon loss. Justice has been served!
* Chad OchoCinco is a fool! Not bad meaning bad but bad meaning good...
* The Killers put on a great show!
* You should never yell a bartenders name, even if you are good friends!
* Jay-Z, Ice Cube, Rakim, Scarface and Tupac are the best rappers of all time, PERIOD!
* With only two real albums on his resume Biggie can’t be considered!
* The USC Trojans are an undercover pro football team!
* Sooner or later somebody is gonna kick Kanye’s ass!
* T.O. is a great player and unfortunately his mouth has landed him in Buffalo! Good luck in the cold homeboy.
* Entourage is one of the best shows ever!
* Rehab in Las Vegas is now wack, but it’s a great money maker!
* Fake tits feel cold!
* Too many corn balls and athletes are covered in tattoos!
* Shawn Merriman should have his card pulled for Tila Tequila!
* People that disappear in the middle of a text message conversation are wack!
* Tiger Woods is absolutely ridiculous!
* It’s better to stay home than to sit in the cheap seats!
* Serena Williams is gangsta, Wow!
* Former Oregon football player LeGarrette Blount was suspended for the entire 2009 season for doing what his parents taught him to do. “When somebody puts there hands on you, whup em!” Unfortunately for LeGarrette he went out of control after he punched Byron Hout and tried to attack the fans in the stands and that’s what I feel got him suspended? Get it together my man, get it together.
* San Francisco weather is just silly!
* Pedro Martinez is still off the chain!
* Bin Laden is an actor!
* You should never wave your money at a bartender!
* People with Face book drama should be taken out and shot!
* Catholic Priests are out of control… in the words of Pink Floyd – “Leave those kids alone”!
* Carlos Santana is a real cool cat! Go see him @ The Joint in Las Vegas this November at the Hard Rock Hotel. It’s small, intimate and very inexpensive
* Baseball managers and umpires should just fight!
* Debacterialize is a word!
* Weekend warriors should accept their very important role in society! The court systems rely heavily on your dough!
* Adrian Peterson is the man!
* Automatic payments suck ass! Wait til you see how hard it is to cancel something, they make it so hard especially AT&T
* Many words that are spoken should never be written!
* You should never order a TOP SHELF Long Island Ice Tea!
* T.O. has his own cereal called T.O.’s – FRESH!!!

PS1 out...

and the survey says...

The following entry was inspired by an email sent to me by my sister and then a trip next door to Trader Joe's. I felt somewhat like a cheat because I went into the store to buy fresh vegetables to make dinner and there it was… a pre-chopped onion, garlic and shallots medley! Joy?!?!?!
Some of the questions that follow I do have an opinion about but I am curious to see what my friends and family think???

Is it bad to use a calculator if you know how to add!
It is bad to listen to audio books if you know how to read?
Is it bad to use Cliff’s notes if you aren’t interested in the book assigned?
Is it bad to buy pre-sliced / diced fruits and vegetables?
Is it bad to hire a cleaning person if you know how to clean?
Is time money? Or is that just something we say when we don't want to be bothered with doing a favor?
Is the price of stamps getting out of control?
Why did your teacher tell you to look it up, when you asked how to spell it?
Why do the parking meters in San Francisco give you 8 minutes for the first 25 cents but only 15 minutes for 50 cents?
Why will your credit card company drop your APR if you call and threaten to cancel the card?
Why doesn’t the price of plane tickets drop dramatically right before the plane takes off in order to fill the empty seats?
- Aren’t they are going there anyway?
Why can Michael Vick play pre-season football but not regular season football until week 6?
Why do people order brand named liquor if they want mixers (usually sugar) added?
Why does Starbucks taste exactly the same no matter which store you go to?
Why do you need coffee in the morning?
Why is health care free in Canada?
Why are people embarrassed to admit that they don’t have health care?
Why is college free in some countries around the world?
Why can’t you get a job without previous experience? How do you get previous experience without a job?
- Are you still paying off college loans?
Why did Plaxico Burress hire a prison consultant?
- How do you become a prison consultant?
Why can't left-handed people play shortstop?
Why do college sports programs get penalized even though the coaches/players that broke the rules have moved on?
Why / how are there more than 53 domestic violence calls on the Monday after Super Bowl, but the losing team only has 53 players?
Do you mind listening to sportscasters that didn't play the sport they comment about?
Do you think athletes get paid too much?
Do team owners make more or less than the players?
Do you know anyone that went into business to break even?
Do you eat genetically engineered fruit like seedless watermelons, pluots or tangelos?
Do you remember life without cell phones?
Do you still own a home phone?
- If yes, why?
Do you prefer to text or talk?
Do you think it costs the phone company more money to connect you across the country than across the street?
Should you have to be a divorced to counsel people through theirs?
Should women give their girlfriends man advice if they don't have a man?


I'm looking forward to reading your thoughts... post them here or send them to my email.

PS1

...random sh*t;

Michael Jackson – dead and gone, may he truly rest in peace as I’m sure he had a crazy and stress filled run. I’ve had a couple random conversations about him and never realized how attached so many people truly were to him!... Mom always told us growing up that you couldn’t take it with you so I why are folks so concerned about Mike’s money, he’s gone. I’ve heard folks asking “how could you waste all that money?… and I’ve thought damn! look how much fun that dude had! Have you ever been to Six Flags Magic Mountain? A 2 hour wait for your favorite ride in 100 degree summer weather sucks ass! This dude Mike J. had a roller coaster in his BACKYARD!!! MTV’s Cribs? I don’t know… A few things I’ve come to realize; 1. Mike has never had to sit in a cubicle a day in his life!!! 2. Mike has never had to stay up late and write a 40 page paper the night before it was due, after having all semester to do it! 3. Michael has never walked into bar and asked, “How much for your cheapest beer?" before ordering it! But, I’m just sayin’…

Major League Baseball – baseball is back!!! Called my best boy from the Giants game yesterday and realized how much I truly love Baseball. Once upon a time I was a huge fan, steroids took over, I lost interest and we broke up… It’s nice to see Baseball again, skinny fast guys stealing bases, some players batting less than .300, and every second baseman not hitting 50 home runs each… At this pace another couple years will have baseball back swinging stronger than ever!!!

For the record – I am and always will be a Padres fan, Hicks and Trina Jones! Now that baseball and I are dating again I am left to watch the Giants, the flight to Petco Park every Sunday would be costly… Former Padres manager Bruce Bochy has done a great job!!! The fact that the Giants are now winners makes our affair even easier…

Dominican Republic - off the hook! Please visit and while visiting please appreciate modern primitive living!!! Very refreshing…

Tequila – did you know that Tequila is the only liquor that makes you happy? Hard to believe, look around the room at your local Tequila bar!!! 

Michael Vick – welcome back and good luck! ESPN highlights and Berman / Jackson haven’t been the same without you!!!

Brisco – this Miami hip hop recording artist was recently robbed in a barber shop following a photo shoot. The robbery was caught on tape and Brisco was recorded saying “I’ll just get bigger jewelry and more shine!” hmmmmmm, think that you might get robbed again?... I’m just sayin’

GI Joe – go see it and parents definitely take your boys or even better drop them off with their boys and give ‘em popcorn money! The action is non-stop and they actually do a very good job with the characters. The cartoon was my favorite as a child so I was a little nervous that it would tank… Two thumbs up!!!

Til Then - ps out!

high on intelligence, low on information...

Heading north from San Diego to Long Beach to visit a great friend I find myself on the Amtrak train gazing out at the Southern California coastline. Unintentionally, I find that I am slowly transforming into this young child riding the train for the very first time. Many thoughts are racing in and out of my head as I reminisce over the past two weeks in which I played host to my six year old nephew in San Francisco, Ca. The lifetime of memories and experiences shared should forever serve as an inspirational launch pad.

Our first full day in the city and we were blessed with amazing weather so we decided to take a cruise around town. We went up and down the big huge hills where the cars have to park sideways; we traveled down Fillmore St. to a great view of the bay and that big red bridge, we took a trip to over to Lombard St. and after I shared with him that it was the most twisty street in the whole wide world I watched his eyes grow past enormous. Without thinking I told him about my crazy friend James that drove me up that same street going the wrong direction when I first moved to San Francisco. I say without thinking because of course he wanted us to make that same trip!!! It was painful for me to tell him that it wasn’t such a good idea and that it was very dangerous because I had so much fun doing it. Deep down I knew he would probably experience the same rush that I felt on my trip but I also weighed in the fact that if something went wrong San Diego would be a place that would be off limits to me as long as my mom is alive!

On our journey downtown while trying to explain what that meant we saw the big triangle shaped building that commands the attention of anyone staring at the San Francisco skyline. It wasn’t until the very next day when we went to the IMAX theater to see Monsters vs. Aliens in 3D did those landmarks really come into play. The film was created by the folks at Pixar in Emeryville just across the Bay and they used San Francisco as the back drop for the film. The experience was priceless, the little guy shouting out “whoa we’re in outer space!”, when the movie started and having monsters and aliens float right up to your face is very fun especially if you enjoy it natures way. And if you're keeping score at home, of course we had to go and see that big red bridge and the triangle shaped skyscraper after the movie.

The Exploratorium inside the Palace of Fine Arts is very cool and informative. Imagine all the lame ass science projects and reports you did in grade school being brought to life and presented in a hands on environment. Just like the movie I think I might have had more fun than the little dude! Our next fun outing was taking the Bart and the Muni trains to the Academy of Science. This place is like a museum and zoo mixed together. The weirdest and most interesting animals are housed there. Try explaining to a six year old why an albino alligator is white. The lack of green pigmentation and melanin mean absolutely nothing. The enormous fish in the aquarium downstairs was also cool. Somehow we missed the penguin enclosure but we spent a lot of time in the tropical water exhibit. It was full of sharks, manta rays, coral and colorful fish. I learned all about clown fish, Nemo and his friends courtesy of the little dude! That was very cool but what was even cooler was our stroll past the magic shop on 9th Ave just off Irving St. Luckily for the residents of San Francisco this store was closed for some odd reason. In the window was a display of poppers that he is all too familiar with. For those of you that attended private school or just had butt hole parents, poppers are these little white things that kids will kill for. They look like little pieces of wadded up paper and pop when you throw them at the ground, lots o’ fun. I actually still enjoy them myself from time to time. Sitting next to the poppers in the window was a display of stink bombs. I remember stink bombs from junior high school and man did those things clear out a classroom in a hurry. When I explained what they were and what they did you would have thought the little guy just saw Santa Claus climbing down the chimney on Christmas day. His devious smile was worth a billion bucks, and all I could think of was Dennis the Menace!!! Strangely part of me wanted those stink bombs as much as he did. GREAT thing the store was closed.

During the little guys visit we would stop by the lounge every other day or so to say hi to Mike. I had to explain why people leave money on the bar when they buy a drink but I still don’t think I made that clear? He earned a few dollars during his stay doing odd jobs and completing simple tasks. The homeless or addiction challenged people out on the streets begging for his hard earned dinero didn’t stand a chance! Try explaining to a six year old why it’s ok to hang out all day and hit people up for their hard earned dough, and when you do please help me understand as well!

Fourteen days is a long time for a single guy to play mom and dad in a single person’s city. Thank God for a few good friends, Uncle Mack, chocolate milk and cinnamon toast crunch. Without the before mentioned who knows what might have happened to me and the little guy? With kids, a simple trip to dinner is no longer an option. To the people sitting next to you, privacy aint happenin’. One night at dinner I could tell the couple sitting next to us was on a first or second date just by their body language. I felt bad because we were loud and his food was everywhere. Then I thought this might be the best gift ever because after the countless cocktails they knocked back maybe my little Tasmanian Devil inspired them to finish their night very carefully!

With every trip on the train I found myself apologizing to the person sitting across from us for being stepped on or being kicked over and over again. Ice Skating lasted all of ten minutes. I wasn’t down with taking a spill on the ice so I couldn’t be mad at the little guy for feeling the same way. “Pizza with salad stuff on it” is probably the worst invention ever. As funny as that sounded the first time I heard him say uuuuhhhh, I couldn’t help but agree. Hummus wasn’t happenin’. My world famous and very delicious eggs with ground up broccoli, onions and garlic wasn’t even worth considering, those went completely untouched. Plain eggs were prepared and they were devoured. The crust of all bread slices was left on his plate every time. Daily I juice and therefore I am, the kid wasn’t havin’ that. If anything other than oranges went into that juice machine and he was turned off and tuned out.

I often talk to my mom about the little guys habits and how “picky” he is. My opinion, he actually has it all figured out at an early age. He already lives by the law my friends and I aspire to live by, “things I’m doin’and things I ain't doin’!” All I can do for now is just admire the little dude for practicing this ideology decades before I learned to.

Very intelligent and still seeking information...

Peace,

PS1

The Cutler Situation...

Let me start this letter by saying, "Thank you GOD!"

Over the past few weeks those of you that follow sports even a little bit have probably heard about the drama in Denver. The end of last the last football season marked the beginning of the end of Jay Cutlers stay in Denver and playing professional football for the Denver Broncos. After another disappointing season in Denver the Broncos decided to fire their head coach Mike Shannahan and bring on a young and not as experienced coach out of the New England Patriots organization, Josh McDaniels. McDaniels spent the past couple of years grooming and nurturing a young quarterback Matt Cassel who suprisingly led the Patriots to an 11-5 season after losing their starting quarterback early in the season to injury. When McDaniels became the head coach in Denver this off-season he did what most leaders would like to do, build his team with his players. Unfortunatley for McDaniels he was not successful in trading for Cassel into Denver and ultimately lost the faith and respect in then current starting quarterback Jay Cutler.

The past month or so has brought on many debates and opinions about Cutler and his sensitivity, his child like behavior and his needing to get over it. HUH??? Get over it? What does it say about the society that we live in when your new boss attempts to get rid of you because he feels he has someone that can accomplish the task at hand better than you can and the public criticizes you and calls you childish for saying, ok then I'm out.

I started this letter by thanking GOD, thanking him for sending us a public figure that is willing to say "F*CK YOU new boss! F*CK YOU, for trying to unsuccessfully trade me, F*CK YOU for asking me to come and work for you after you couldn't get who you really wanted. I, Jay Cutler am suppossed to pick up the phone and accept your meeting invitation, listen to your apology, then get in front of a camera and say everything is ok? I am Jay Cutler a Pro-Bowl, All Star Quarterback! I am one of the best in my profession and I am suppossed to be ok with someone trying to get rid of me? I'm sorry is for people that are sorry and always feels so empty to me. I'm sorry is almost like a pass to do whatever you want and then be let off the hook by easily saying I'm sorry. The current trend of American culture had me expecting to turn on the radio or telelvision last month to hear Jay Cutler reading a letter written by his publicist saying that he and McDaniels had resolved their issues and are looking forward to a great and productive season. I was so relieved to hear that he took a 100,000.00 hit for not showing up to VOLUNTARY workouts. Wait a minute, "I am not receiving my bonus because I missed a VOLUNTARY workout?" Maybe Jay's four years at Vanderbilt Universtiy meant nothing and he was never taught what the word VOLUNTARY means?

April 2nd 2009, Jay Cutler is traded to the Chicago Bears and his new life begins. Josh McDaniels you are no longer worthy to utilize Cutlers skill set and the people in Colorado have been steered to believing that Cutler is to blame. Again, ask yourself how you might feel if you busted your ass to become great at what you do, lose your coach / mentor only to have a new, young and inexperienced coach step in and try and fix something that wasn't broken to begin with. Keep in mind that Jay Cutler is a Pro Bowl All Star player.

The best of luck to you Jay Cutler, Manny Ramirez of the LA Dodgers and any other employee that makes a business tons of money only to be told to take it or leave it when Big Boss Pimp Nasty is finished with you!!! I THANK YOU for telling them to take it or leave it!!!

Questions - Are we ALL ok with just getting by? Are we OK with being shit on time and time again? When and where do you draw your line in the sand?

Prostitution is illegal!!!

PS1

Runaway Rubbish...

During the wee hours of Sunday morning I found myself in a very unusual position, suffering from extreme PAIN!!! After leaving a sick ass after hours party, sick meaning polished individuals, girls in pretty dresses, a few model friends of ours, some other club owners, lots of industry folks and absolutely no twilight tweakers. I stopped at a convenience store to get a bag of almonds and proceeded to the car. The wind in SF was blowing like crazy. The only time in my life I have ever felt wind that strong was when I went to Miami for the 2006 VMA's and caught the tail end of Hurricane Katrina. After watering a couple trees I am about to get in the car and I see a random dumpster coming down Post St. at about 20mph. I think that's weird and suddenly realize it is headed straight towards my car!!! I run out into the street and attempt to get my superhero stop on and boom I got IT!!! The sliding mechanism on the dumpster catches the pinky on my shooting hand (see Spring 2009 UCSF intramural hoops champs) and pretty much swallows it. Between the freezing cold and the instant shock I didn't fully comprehend what had just happened. Mckenzy G. always present, grabs the can and in a panic I try my best to pull my finger out. I'm not sure when the cut occured but when I finally got it out I could see my bone, inside of a finger - not pretty!!! I immediately open the trunk looking for a towel because I anticipated blood to be squirting everywhere. Never happened? I ask McKenzy to drive me to the ER, unfortunately he is from New York and they don't all drive over there so that lasted only about 4 blocks. "A" for effort my man, "A" for effort. I took the wheel and went about 20 mins to Kaiser.

Kaiser 5:15 AM - after checking in I wasn't in a panic but had all types of random thoughts running thru my head. I hadn't been in an emergency room since I broke my foot when I was 13. I was thinking about every hip-hop record I've ever heard criticizing the service people get in emergency rooms. After my experience I should record one too! Nurses cracking jokes, victims of bar fights being ridiculed (some of those stories were entertaing though), a couple nurses gossiping and a doctor that looked long overdue for a good nights sleep. When I finally got some attention and told my story I was told by two nurses that doesn't look like a trash can incident, my question "what does a trash can incident look like???" Had I known that this reality TV watching, hoping for a good story to take home type of staff was looking for an adventure, man would I have given 'em one. Believe that!!!

I felt like I was being punished for a while because after not feeding the right gangster fairy tale to the staff they all but ignored me for about an hour??? Yes, about an hour! It didnt really set in until this smoking hot bartender from a bar that I know comes in in a wheel chair with a twisted ankle and the male nurses some women too were all over her! I was in the bed next curtain over and I could hear everything. They had no shame! I was like damn patch her up and take her to breakfast already! Attention male nurse perverts - I can hear you, this is not a wall this is a curtain!

It is now about 730 AM and they finally start working on me. The up-sale is now on, according to the staff I was near death if I refused any of the products they suggested. I normally stay as far away from modern medicine as I can but given the fact that my pinky was damn near severed I felt I should comply. 11 stiches and 3 hours later I was released and sent home with prescriptions to be filled.

Moral of this story - get your Jackie Chan on and drop kick the dumpster should you ever be in a similar predicament.

PS1

el presidente...

I woke up this morning to ESPN and was blown away to see our President filling out his NCAA tournament bracket on national television. This move was very fresh to me for multiple reasons; 1. he was willing to expose himself and his hoops expertise to the nation, 2. he is continually showing us that he is a normal guy that drinks beer, watches hoops and smokes an occasional cigarette. When I think of Obama I think of William Wallace!!!

Check it out and for those of you that dont follow college hoops the guy actually knows what he's doing. I still have Louisville winning it all!!!

See you soon... PS1

http://games.espn.go.com/tcmen/entry?entryID=2813746

The first post...

Thanks to my good friend and great artist McKenzy G. I am now hosting my own official Blog Spot... Thanks Big Homey... I've always believed that education thru communication is the foundation to a stronger community. Until they or you shut it down, we will get better and grow stronger!!! Peace, PS 3.17.2009