Lame

Why is it, that when a guy is single, there are no females even remotely interested in him?

Then, when he has a girlfriend (more like when they find out he has one) the females come out of the woodwork?

Does that somehow make him more desirable?I never understood it and I never will.

And now that it’s happening to me, I can’t help but laugh.

In a way, it makes me angry. I mean, where were you before all this?

Where were you when I called you to hang out? Where were you when I asked you to come out with me, maybe go to dinner? Where were you when I was actually trying to get with you? Where in the hell were you when I was at my loneliest point?

Yeah, where in the hell were you, because I sure couldn’t figure it out.

That’s the thing…you weren’t there.

Oh wait, yes you were. That’s right, I forgot.

You were busy blowing me off…

…or stringing me along…

…or playing some other type of game with me.

But in reality, you were nowhere to be found.

Now all of a sudden, a slew of girls have come out of nowhere…girls I haven’t talked to in months.

Why is that? Someone, anyone, please explain it to me. PLEASE!

I’m not really mad…in fact, I don’t really give a shit…but I do because it’s so crazy to me.

I think more than anything, I’m baffled.

Baffled and appalled at how hypocritical and LAME you all are.

I think that’s the best word to describe it…LAME. Because that’s what you are.

You know what…get a fucking clue, would you?

I mean, how self-righteous do you think you are? You really must think you are the shit if you can dog me out one minute when I try to get with you and then turn around and try to get with me the next…while I have a girlfriend, mind you.

And not that you are even necessarily trying to get with me…it’s like you contact me out of spite, just for the simple fact that I do have a girlfriend.

I’m sorry, but I don’t work like that…never have, never will. Sorry you don’t realize it.

You know what? I’m not sorry at all…YOU are.

In fact, I don’t even know why in the hell I’m so upset about it.

Actually, at this point in the game, I’m pretty damn happy with my situation, to be perfectly honest with you.

I have a girlfriend now and I didn’t have to play any games to get her to like me. She likes me for me and that’s what counts.

No games. No fronting. No playing hard to get. No stringing me along. No, “Well, I like you but…”

No. None of that. No teasing. No misleading. NO GAMES.

Instead, I get honesty.

And in the end, that’s all I really wanted in the first place. Now is that too much to ask for?

I can’t tell you how good it feels. Feeling genuine about someone is something that is untouched.

And I can’t tell you how good it feels to write this…and to laugh while I write it because it makes me feel so good to realize how full of shit you all were and are.

The best part about all this is knowing that I don’t have to deal with any of that bullshit anymore. It’s like having a weight lifted off of my shoulders, I gotta tell ya.

IT FEELS…SO GOOD!

Maybe one day you will have that feeling…

But you have to grow up first. Good luck with that.

~ Mike D

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Weekend Recap: 8/24 - 8/26

Friday night we were at the bar in Royal Oak.

There was a terrible storm a few hours earlier knocking down power lines and what not.

My dad and I were out to eat previous to that storm, around 7 p.m. or so. We saw the radar on the news from TV at the restaurant, which prompted my dad to say, “we better get the hell outta here.”

Good thing we did because as soon as we walked into the door at our house, it started pouring. The sky turned black and it was pretty damn scary.

So anyway, there we were…at the bar with some people, having a drink or two. We got there about 10 p.m. 

At approximately 11:05 p.m. EST, the Detroit Tigers started the first of a four game series with the Yankees. The series would have high playoff implications in the AL Central race as well as the AL Wild Card race.

I couldn’t believe they actually started the game that late.

It surprised me even more to see how many fans turned up for the late game and stayed the ENTIRE TIME. You could see on TV that there were quite a few people there till the end.

I thought about turning the game off as I watched it extend into the wee hours of the morning. When 3 a.m. rolled around, I thought about shutting it off even more. I mean, after all, I had to get up early and head off to Mount Pleasant and I knew I needed my rest.

But then I thought, “Wait a minute…I’ve stayed up this late already…why wouldn’t I just stick it out…couldn’t be that much longer…what the hell, I’m stay in up.”

30 minutes.

That’s how long it was. It was then that Carlos Guillen hit a 3-run walk off home run. I could not believe it. Wow. So worth staying up for.

I’ve realized lately, and at the moment that I watched Guillen’s home run, that this is playoff baseball and I LOVE IT. And damn it! I LOVE THE F’N TIGERS!

Saturday

Sean and I headed out to CMU aroundddd..noon or so. Somewhere around there.

Picked up JD on the way from Saginaw and set out for greatness, once again.

It was the first time I had been to Mt. P since moving out a few months ago, so it felt different in a way.

Different because, I knew I was starting classes or anything and it was Welcome Weekend. I was basically going up there to visit friends and have a good time. I hadn’t hung out with my boys in a while, so it was good to have the Fam (as we like to call it) back together again.

Here was the projected line-up: myself, Rinks, JD, Drew, B. Hun, Beno, Brandon B, Landon, Streets, T-Nell, JR. Anyone else was a bonus to me.

JD, Drew and myself got a bite to eat and caught up over some grub in Midland while Sean headed to Mt. P for his cousin’s wedding.

I got word that JD is moving to Cleveland for work within the next month, so who knows when I’ll get to see the homie again.

He was celebrating the night by acquiring a bottle of Alize from the local beverage outlet. JD had planned to bust it out just at the right moment, at the right time and the right people. 

Something in my head was telling me go for liquor, and I did, which is something I don’t normally do. I like beer, what can I say?

The majority of night was spent out on Main street. But the Alize disappeared long before that, just incase you were wondering.

Wandering. That’s what we did. Walked around and drank. We also didn’t run from cops like dumb freshman, which enabled us to have even more fun. And we made fun of a lot of people. Not for any reason really, just kinda poking fun and being stupid. Not cruelly, but just drunken stupid stuff.

Like saying the word “bro” 20 times in one sentence. It’s great.

Or telling people we were “having a keg in Troutman 404 later that night” and that “the R.A. is gone, so we won’t get caught” and that we “snuck it up in a laundry hamper on the back stairs.” Some people actually believed us I think…dumb freshman *shakes head*

I did feel quite a bit older after seeing some of the new freshman. Not saying I’m old, just saying I felt a little “older.”

I don’t know. It was different. There was just something about it. It was just different. That doesn’t mean I didn’t have a good time, because I had a great time and I always do with my friends. No question.

Drew, Beno and Sean went out the breakfast the next morning after we figured out what the hell happened to us the night before.

*Insert funny story here*
Turns out Drew made or received a call from his girlfriend around 7:30 a.m. I remember this because I am a light sleeper and I wake up easily. Plus, I was sleeping on the floor, which sucks incase you didn’t know.

I remember Drew saying he would come home to have breakfast and then said he was leaving. He didn’t. He asked JD to go get some breakfast. JD said no. Drew went back to sleep. At this point, I was in and out of sleep, just trying to get a little more every time.

Drew’s phone rang periodically now at this point. It rang about 15-20 times until about 10 a.m. and all I could keep thinking was “WTF?! WHO’S PHONE IS THAT?!!! No one is answering and it just keeps ringing! Godddddddd…I’m SO HUNGOVER…I NEED FOOOOOD…”

I guess she wasn’t that happy with him after that incident.
*End funny story*

We talked about it all over a nice greasy breakfast. JD was so hungover he couldn’t even bring himself to come with us. After it was all said and done, we figured out what really happened the night before. We didn’t have every piece to the puzzle, but we made it and that was good enough.

And while the hangover last several hours and into the rest of the day, I don’t really care because memories…well, you know how long they last.

On the flip side, I decided how happy I was to be out of the college lifestyle because damn, I just don’t know if I could handle that anymore. My body is pretty happy with that decision. Mainly my liver.

Nevertheless, great times without question. Expect nothing less.

ENJOY YOUR LIFE

~ Mike D

Concert Review: The Cool Kids @ The Blind Pig - Ann Arbor, MI 8/4/07

Are they old school? Are they new school? Are they really the ‘new black version of the Beastie Boys?’

If you don’t know who I’m referring to, they call themselves The Cool Kids, an up-and-coming hip-hop duo out of Chicago composed of two members: Chuck Inglish and Mikey Rocks.

“Sayonara to afros and old flows.”

Family, friends, hip-hop headz, music lovers, regulars, first timers, and everyone in between were all there to see them perform at The Blind Pig last Saturday in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Ann Arbor is somewhat of a crossroads for Chicago and Detroit alike, a spot where everyone can meet in the middle. It has long been a resting spot for blues, Motown, punk and techno. The Blind Pig has hosted numerous famous acts: MC5, Bo Diddley, Nirvana, and Jimi Hendrix, just to name a few.

On Saturday night, the 30-year-old nightclub hosted none other than The Cool Kids for their first Michigan performance. For Inglish, who was born in Detroit and raised in Mount Clemens, it was somewhat of a homecoming.

“Welcome to Bedrock.”

Bedrock indeed. The group hit the stage at about 12:30 a.m. after a long anticipation had been built up by the crowd. As Mikey encouraged everyone to “Come check the noise / It’s the new black version of the Beastie Boys,” they fittingly spun right into their own version of the Beasties’ “Paul Revere.”

They kept the crowd jumpin’ throughout their entire set. From the old school sounding “88” with heavy guitar and hollow snare, to the heavy bass-thumping “Flossin.’” They separated “people from the squares like a nicotine patch.”

Inglish, donned in Gucci frames and red Nikes, and Mikey, laced in gold chains and a pair of Jordan’s, rocked their newest jam “Pump Up The Volume” in true Eric B & Rakim form. And if you know anything about The Cool Kids, you know they love their bikes. (See: Black Mags)

“I gets busy as a bee with my bike grips.”

Speaking of gettin’ busy as a bee, that guy Mikey… he-he-he rocks. And if you don’t believe me, then kick rocks. “Action Figures” and “I Rock” (formerly known as “Mikey Rocks”) are a testament to that. Just look at this dude and the way he floss! Both jams were rocked in Ann Arbor that night.

The Cool Kids kept the crowd movin’ and dancin’ the entire show, because if your friends don’t dance, then they ain’t no friends of mine. They handled their biz till they had the achin’ ribs. With a different level of coolness than most kids, the “C-O-O-L-K-I-D-S” have begun their takeover. Are you ready? The music speaks for itself. Head to the polls for the voting.

Check them out at: Their Myspace page, Mikey Rocks Myspace Page, and Chuck Inglish’s Myspace page.

*All photos by Mike D’Orazio

Also read this review @ http://blogcritics.org/archives/2007/08/07/092801.php

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Review: Common - Finding Forever

One of Chi-town’s rap gods is back and he’s looking to be here… forever.

Rapper Common, or more commonly known as Com, follows up 2005’s Grammy nominated Be with Finding Forever, his seventh studio album in 15 years.

What has he been doing in between albums you ask? Well for one, he started an acting career. With starring roles in Smoking Aces and the upcoming American Gangster, not to mention making this album, he’s been busy to say the least.

The title Finding Forever, is the quest to make “forever music,” according to Com. He says the album’s title “really means to find a place in music where you can exist forever.”

“I’m becoming more confident in who I am as a person, as a man,” Common said. “And I think, too, that at a certain point you just got to be like, ‘Man, I’m just going to make some music that feels good.’ I can’t be thinking too hard about what this cat is thinking over here or what’s going on in hip-hop. I ain’t even paying attention to that. I’m just making music. I write love songs, point blank, and I ain’t ashamed of it,” Common stated.

The quest for forever begins with the first single “The People.” With Kanye West on the track and Com on the raps, it’s easy to “find peace in beats and breaks.” The second single, “The Game,” also features ‘Ye on the beat with scratching/mixing by DJ Premier. With this one, you see Com’s harder side as he talks about his status in the rap game: “My favorite was Kane, now I’m dope with weight in the game / You was hot, but can’t stay in the flame.”

After the intro, the first song entitled “Start the Show” has ‘Ye on the beat with a slow pace. One lyric stands out in particular: “With twelve monkeys on stage, hard to see who’s a gorilla / You was better as a drug dealer.” It makes you wonder if Com going at 50 Cent and G-Unit with this one.

“Drivin’ Me Wild” features British pop star Lily Allen and a nice flow by Common. The song is the supposed third single off of the album. “I Want You” showcases will.i.am on the beat and single for a very sexy and sultry track.

The album is executive produced by West. Nine of the 11 songs (not counting the intro) feature his beats. On “South Side,” Kanyeezy spits a hard verse, but gets a tad bit annoying on the hook. Com delivers blistering verses as well: “Your career is a typo / Mine was written like a haiku.” The track is sure to be a Chicago anthem.Throughout the album, you may think you are listening to the late James “Dilla” Yancey on several songs. But in reality, you are hearing Kanye’s best Dilla impression. According to Com, Kanye tried to chop the samples similar to Dilla’s style as a way of honoring him.

However, there is one Dilla beat on the record found on the song “So Far To Go.” The track features a guest spot by R&B singer D’Angelo. The original version can be found on J.Dilla’s The Shinning. For this version, Com spits entirely new verses. Having Dilla on the album ties in with it’s title because in Com’s eyes, and many others, Dilla and his music are forever.

So has Common found ‘forever?’ That still remains to be seen. He insists that “those that doubt Com will soon believe.” While the album is amazing, the effort falls just short of Be. Even still, Common on his worst day is better than 90 per cent of other rappers in the game on their best day.

Album Grade: B+

Standout Tracks:

- The People

- The Game

- Southside feat. Kanye West

- So Far To Go

- Break My Heart

Also read this review @ http://blogcritics.org/archives/2007/08/02/080320.php

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