Flipskript Ink

I was planning on testing my limit on nomophobia today, but the attacks in Newton, CT and Chengping, Beijing won't let my soul operate in peace. The Associated Press reports that a man opened fire inside of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newton, CT. For some senseless reason, 20 children won't be hugging mommy and daddy tonight. President Obama shared his tears with families and communities impacted by this event. I sincerely can't comprehend this through the eyes of a child: "Third-grade kid deciding what video game to play and sudden, excessive gun shots shake up horror in the building. You're scared, screaming, running for the closet hiding and all you know is that you want you mom and dad." I'm trembling and wanting to go home to my mother and brothers as I post this. These kids were between 5 and 10 years old. Why would someone that young receive such a punishment? Another incident in China involved 22 elementary children and 1 adult. Though

At a recent open mic, this lovely young poet, AVC, recited an original piece about rocky love. There was a certain lyric expressed that resonated with me for some time. I don't want to try and butcher her charming wordplay, so I'll just paraphrase the jist of it... He didn't want anyone all up in his business but updated his Facebook status with what he had for breakfast. When someone has a fight with the lovey-dovey, when baby snug-a-loo takes the first steps, when someone gets a new job or gets demoted, they run to Facebook. Or Tweet their worries away. Some may even Pin their cope-with-stress methods. Throughout it all, is it expected to be private? According to social media guru Bruce Newman, social media privacy does not exist. Newman writes in the Westchester County Business Journal that even sending an email to a person or a group of people doesn't guarantee that the message will remain private. Social means public and what was posted was put online for a rea

I wish that we could all wake up to this. No more bad news, no more war, no more victims of sexual abuse, physical violence and emotional assault. Yet I start preparing my psyche for what negative sustenance the world has in store. I'm having a Wiz moment and the words of Evilene are screaming in my head... "Don't you ever bring me no bad news, cuz I'll make you an offer, chile, that you cannot refuse, so don't nobody bring me NO BAD NEWS!!!" Photo courtesy of Musique's Poetry . What is it exactly that has me fuming this breezy December afternoon? The murder-suicide of another young and thriving somebody. I don't follow sports, but when I came across this sad story on The Root about Kansas City Chief play Jovan Belcher  and his girlfriend, I bit my tongue til it bled. Prayers and condolences to the families, friends, teammates, and so forth. This is another unnecessary tragedy in an already chaotic world.   Another school shooting, this tim

Photo courtesy of Updatec . How many times were you late for work because you left your cell phone at home? How often do you spend checking your email, texting your mom and updating your Pintrest in one day? More importantly, what would Neil Postman say about this? The fear of being without a cell phone, also known as no-mobile-phone phobia or nomophobia , is rising higher than my blood pressure. The first time my coworkers told me about this, I was left quite verbally challenged but I had to see how serious it was. While reading the Daily News , I learned that people check their phones up to 34 times a say. I could be surprised but I'm not because when there is a new gadget and media platform coming out every week, everyone wants to stay in the know, or at least catch up. My sister just told me how convenient it was to have the internet in our hands. I had an immediate flashback of ALF using the computer to play the stock market on the internet...circa 1986. Then it hit me

Accelerating in a focused distraction on the back roads as I approach the Capital District. I switch my driving music from my usual Musiq Soulchild to Nickey Black's "I'm From Albany." I had to admit it, it was good to be home. I remember the ambition held within my personality as I was relocating. I felt restricted by the negative people surrounding me at my job, in my neighborhood...I swore it was everywhere. Something inside me wouldn't let me stay a little bit longer. I swore to myself many times that I wouldn't come back but I can appreciate how impossible this was.  The first and foremost reason for not following though on this is my mother. Mommy is a whole lot stronger than most people think. Sometimes her strength scares me because I know most people in the world couldn't handle her generous yet spitfire-when-necessary spirit. Like I said in a previous article, she taught me how to use a chain saw. Then again I think to myself [in the words o

This was unexpected and last minute, but yeah I changed the name of my blog. After doing some more domain searches, I discovered another Justified Productions somewhere in the realms of Florida...and I've been thinking about changing it for some time anyway, I just didn't know what I wanted. I looked at my old Teenage Millionaire notes and pulled out a list of names I was thinking about if I ever had aspirations of starting my own company, and I came across Flipscript. I dug it, but because of my insatiable habit of acting avant-garde in an ever-changing society that deems and monitors what normalcy is, I changed a couple of letters around. Ok, time to write poetry...and edit those business cards! Photo courtesy of ClipArt .

There was a time when I rarely considered having pets. From what I remember growing up, I only had a couple of pets. They were some hamsters I think my brothers wanted and two small goldfish I won at a county fair. I was about seven when I had the fish. One was gold and the other was silver (Sampson and Hampton). I was a mere toddler when we had hamsters and I don't remember much about them, except I needed to be supervised when I fed the little cute monsters. Since then, I've always had a fascination with hamsters, mice, degus and other similar rodents because...I guess I'm weird like that. But as for dogs and cats, I was completely against it. Don't get at me, I love me some animals. The only reason why I was against having these pets was because of my allergies. I usually react to anything with fur. If a dog jumps up on me to be friendly, I immediately wash my hands. After spending years cringing at cute little pudgy furry faces at pet stores, my mother decided t

If sex is labeled in American culture as a taboo, inappropriate topic to talk about, then sex crimes must be too much for anyone to handle. Sex is just one of those vague topics that has more than one connotation. Narrowing the focus is the most challenging part because everyone has something to say, especially if it involves negative images, portrayals and feelings. No one wants to talk about it, but it’s so easy to watch and sink into on the TV or the internet. So many people are aware of the act itself yet ignore or don’t know the spiritual, emotional/mental and physical effects that take place after. Some consider it a sacred act and some do it for shiggles. Now, for the love of sanity, this article is addressing how sex is perceived in society. I ain’t telling y’all to do anything, you’re grown (if you’re in high school reading this, you just think you’re grown). Why does it sell so well in America? And why did I choose these four women to talk about?  Lorena Bobbit ,

I spent the last couple of days researching the life and times of La Toya Jackson and finally purchased her latest memoir, Starting Over. I didin't even realize it was a New York Times best-seller, plus within my budget. I read some of this book online already and am prepared with some tissues, my Bible, orange juice, and my Jimmy Neutron DVD. I recently took on an additional role to my life as a domestic violence volunteer and Jackson's story really lingered in my inner-being. In my July post, I wrote about my curiousity about her and my article, Sexual Schizophrenia , where I compare and contrast sexuality between genders and race in society. The point in my paper (which I will post when I find it) was that women of color suffer the most from negative stigma. Jackson suffered the most from what I have searched out and I'm hoping that people will start having a little more respect for her efforts, career, and the control that she has for herself once again. In her book

For the economically deranged freelance hustlers... After examining the in-between gigs of sites like Demand Studios , Freelance Writing Gigs and Yahoo! , I'm starting to realize that it may be time for me to put the ice cream carton down and [wo]man up! I came across a post I saw on my old professor's page that said, "WHENEVER YOU THINK ABOUT QUITTING, THINK ABOUT WHY YOU STARTED." So I sat in the middle of my small, roomy space and began contemplating what it was that drove me into the business of the wordplay. Writing has always calmed me down when I feel I could talk to my human counterparts (family, friends, etc) I appreciate the power of the tongue, pen, and paper I admit, I watched more than a necessary amount of TV growing up, but some of my inspiration had to come from somewhere It takes me out of the ever-changing normal anomalies in the world I get to have just a smidge of power and control over what I want to happen in this greedy, loveless worl

I definitely would like to thank my other writing half and bestie, Marcus , because your creativity invaded my sleep. Then again, I did have ice cream for dinner while reading Writer with a Day Job. I dreamt that I was being chased by a new friend because Rihanna was chasing him and I ended up running to Brooklyn. Keep in mind that 90 minutes by car is probably 30 hours on foot. I couldn't help but laugh as I was running from the guy who was running from Rihanna. It turns out that the motivation behind such running fury had to do with barbeque sauce...and guess what I ended up having for dinner a few days later? Honey barbeque chicken wings :0). Fresh from my over-active imagination, I concluded why I was having these dreams. Gas prices, unemployment are going up with everyone's blood pressure, people feel the need to curse everyone out for something, and there are times when you just want to be left alone. Laughing seems to be a helpful remedy so recalling silly dreams have

Photo Courtesy of The Cleveland Movie Blog . After all of the buzz, anticipation, and excitement, we are just less than two days away from the release of the 1976 classic movie, Sparkle . American Idol singer Jordin Sparks will be playing the lead role originally portrayed by Irene Cara. Before seeing the remake, I searched intently for the 1st movie at bargain stores (I thrive off of discounts, but I digress). The movie tells the story sisters trying to make it big in the business through life changes and challenges. Sparks, Tika Sumpter (BET's The Game), Carmen Ejogo (British Nigerian Actress and singer) will be playing the Williams sisters with the moves and voices. Derek Luke (just watched him on my HawthoRNe DVD) will be playing the ambitious, heart-throbbing Stix who manages the girls. And the late Whitney Houston will be playing Emma, the girls' mother. There are many reasons why I expect many tears to be shed during the movie...or parts of the movie. These reaso

Photo courtesy of eHow . Do you ever feel like there are people in this world who wake up every morning and think, "So...who's life can I ruin today?" The way people are acting these days, it is so easy to dress up in apathy. After a series of events I have both witnessed and experienced (still uncertain if they are unfortunate or not), I found myself having to vent a lot but I didn't want to drive away my loved ones. It was bad enough that trust and smiling backstabbers were forcing me to alter my perception of my earthly siblings. Human interaction keeps revealing itself as compassion turns to dispassion, respect turns into rebellion, and order becomes disorganized. And I haven't even touched on natural rudeness yet. My inner-sociologist keeps putting dukes up with my procrastinating muckraker (bad combination, I know) and I can't help but apply the Marxist and Weberian theories in the what I see. Apparently, some people with important titles keep r

As I balance my days between the 9-to-5 and the pen-and-paper on the side, I find myself nervous and confused about self-publishing. I'm still editing the second draft of my chapbook, Slow to Anger, and my very awesome friend, Poetyc Visionz did my book cover. By the looks of things, I better get goin on dee good foot fast. Ironic. I already let the anger channel through my being and my book was one result. Now, I have to let the anxiety channel through me so I can see the finished copy? Scattering the searches through sites like Outskirts Press , CreateSpace , and the newly formed SheWrites Press , I also thumbed through the pages of the annual Poet's Market and Writer's Market. I remember when I first moved to Dutchess County last year and I began This Year You Will Write Your Novel by Walter Mosley in the public library. I spent nights reading the book inside the library, taking notes in my notebook on the tips I needed to get myself going. The ambition, determinati

Photo courtesy of wotyougot . I read an excerpt of La Toya Jackson's latest book, Starting Over. Tell me how I'm didn't even buy the book and I'm already fighting back tears. I wrote about La Toya and Janet Jackson in a school paper a few years back in college, Virgin, Vamp, and Sweet Little Tramp , now titled  Sexual Schizophrenia. It mainly dealt with the American view of sexuality in the media, women, and race. I had to compare and contrast a lot with the racial part because...well let's face it, it's 2012, racism is not dead and sex is running as rampant as the common cold germ. Nonetheless, I was excited and anxious to delve into La Toya Jackson's life story. She was the Jackson sibling with the pretty face (they're a good-looking family), kind of quiet, and suddenly she disappeared, reappeared, everyone hated her and I couldn't understand why. I was determined to find out what happened to her when I became an adult. I saw her famous

I'm not sure what is flattening my Pepsi the most...not knowing what to write about, having a hard time looking for gigs in my field, or just starting all over together. Bouncing between the pages of Writer with a Day Job and Get a Freelance Life, one would think that there would be more than enough to update on a blog. However, I draw an inconvenient blank because it's hard to shake off the feeling of an angry journalist. My unofficial twin and I spent the majority of the weekend talking about how annoying, upset, and disappointed we have been because we're both literary and lyrical artists (now that I think about it, our Avant-garde Conformist needs an overdue update) and we do everything else but write. Writing is like breathing to us, we do it because we need to. He, my bestie Marcus, is an NYU grad student following his dream in musical theater arts and making things happen and I'm a writer with a day job, hence why I bought the book. I've met other people

How oxymoronic was that? I wouldn’t let them fire me, I wouldn’t let them. I was not going to let the lack of maturity and support from a so-called “team” take me out of the game of life that easily. I decided when it was time for me to go. From this personal statement, anger and confusion are sown all up and through. But hey, at least I could make some wonderful stories and poetry from it. Sometimes, silence is the best reaction to certain behaviors. Someone must have thought I was stupid or something. As I stated earlier, I have a degree in sociology and this degree allowed me to just watch and observe. I took a new job in another industry and relocated and I’m doing me now. As I write this story through the angry flashbacks while grinding my teeth, I can finally smile because they couldn’t get rid of me when they wanted. I wouldn’t let them… It took a lot of reluctance to get this posted on here, let alone submit it to the anthology. I've been debating back and forth ab

~Part 2 to my essay on sociological sickness and confusion~ Everything that I did and said was wrong, and I was supposedly annoying...and loud. Okay, so I was loud…teachers are loud. Certain ones I can hear from outside of the building, yet I was the annoying one. So were their obsessions with bad reality shows, and this was mostly on the job. During lunch breaks (before I utilized them for walks and the nearby deli), I listened to them complain about tanning to reduce their pale complexions (would it have been wrong for me to jump in and say, “ I win, I have the most color ”), trash talk nonsense, and find out who everyone’s favorite rapper was. When I was asked who I liked, I told some of them that I’m more into jazz and old school hip hop and old school R&B (Chi’Lites, Earth Wind & Fire, Doug E. Fresh). I didn’t even get a chance to tell them about my top five Metallica songs. “Wait…she has a college degree, she’s 22/23, and still a virgin? And she’s not into rap? W

Music has a healthy habit of evoking emotions in us, no one is immune to it. Since I'm in a relaxed mood, I'm gonna try to contain myself to positive music. While I editing my chapbook, I was scrambling though my iPod for a peaceful vibe. Embracing the solitude of the little corner in the library, I almost forgot I had this song on my list...I say almost because ironically I let it play as I fell asleep last night, Johann Pachenbel's Canon in D major : Granted, it's a little long but relaxing nonetheless. This is my second favorite calming song in life. My number 1 "GIRL, SHUT UP AND BREATHE!" song is Sweet Lullaby (Ambient Mix)  by Deep Forest : The pictures of the seas and water really make this moving. I could use a massage right about now... Moving forward, I had a moment to think about why I was so caught up in the frustrations of this journey oflife. As my gramma told me not too long ago, that is life right now. Up. Down. In. Out. Ha

 Photo courtesy of The Negro Queen .  ~This was an essay I wrote for an anthology. I was sad when it didn't get accepted :o(. But then I realized, I have a blog, I can publish it myself, you silly goose :o). Advanced Warning: I'm posting this into a three part series because it's over 1000 words long and I'm sure you would like a pancake break in between there somewhere!~ “They said they couldn’t stand me, but they couldn’t [under]stand me; tried to get me fired, have my bosses reprimand me!”- from my poem The New Teacher I don’t remember having been fired from any job that I have had so far in my life, and I hope and pray that I never endure such a thing. I do believe, however, that I had a very close encounter for possible, not exact, reasons. Immediately after graduating college back in 2009, I was offered a job working with in a daycare. Now I have worked with kids before and have experience as a baby-sitter as well. Nonetheless, I was nervous and ve

Photo courtesy of Making Money Online . While I was helping out a coworker with a project, I began flipping through random pages of personal finance articles I found in publications such as Black Enterprise , Ebony , The Next Step Magazines and even online at Yahoo! Finance . I completely forgot how much of I nerd I am about this stuff. Experts say that the Great Recession might be coming to an end, but I don't plan on holding my breath anytime soon, especially since it's costing me. Everything from gas to cheese to clothes and health insurance plans seem to be going up, except the cost of living. College graduates have decided to stay home alittle longer with their parents until they can themselves together beyond the college debt, and even young adults who previously moved out of mom and dad's house are back in the nest again. Aside from reduced income and living within one's means, what more can we do? What about those in the position of barely getting by bu

 Photo courtesy of The Presurfer . Cooties. Germs. Bacteria. The ickies...whatever you call them, there are more on your cell phone than there are in a porta potty. Research and various news reports have been alerting the public about how there are more fecal germs on a cell phone because of improper hand washing after one *ahem* expells his/her inner demons. What constitutes improper hand washing? From my observation, it can consist of not using soap [aka the rinse and run], not washing long enough, or using just hand sanitizer. The worst of improper hand washing is when one doesn't wash them at all. Why does this lethal event teke place? I don't know and I honestly don't understand it. If you are at the age where you know you should wash your hands after handling your business and you decide not to, that's just nasty. There are even little posters in some public rest rooms that explain how one should wash the hands. It's quite simple; wet your hands, ad

Scanning the world of Yahoo earlier today, I came across the article on Glee Actress Amber Riley and her unexpected collapse on the red carpet . This event occured at an event hosted by the TV Academy of Art and Sciences. She recovered quicky and extended thank you's to fans, photographers not snapping pics of the fall, and all those who were worried for her well-being. Those who weren't worried I have a few names for them but I'm trying this new thing called being nice. Some of the comments were targeted directly to her weight or some unhealthy factor the Black community suffers. I'm fully aware that Riley is not the first or only African American beauty to be ripped to shreds because of her figure. When you're famous, I guess it just comes with the territory, unless you're already skinny and glamorous by society's standards. If you're Black, beautiful, and petite, somebody will find something wrong with you quick and blow it up like an atom bomb. R

This is one of my favorite paintings from Remedios Varo: Ruptura (Rupture, 1955)  Photo courtesy of Pittsburg State University .  Escape comes to mind everytime I look at this picture. I came across this when I was a a sophomore in high school (2003-ish) when doing a project for my Spanish class. This particular painting stuck with me for the longest because it meshed in with how I was feeling during that time of my life. I wasn't considered much of a normal chick (and I'm still not, LOL).   I like to place myself in the woman's place in the painting, maintainting a cool swag as I exit stage left away certain phases, relationships,and habits in my life. The onlookers in the windows don't seem pleased with her exit and hold a scorn for her...or her freedom. As depicted by many art lovers, her cloak resembles a certain body part which signifies an ongoing struggle in society. I look at it and think, "women are a weaker vessel (emotionally) but poss

Where do I begin? Which topic sounds more important right now, Megan Fox's wardrobe, updates in the Trayvon Martin case, Katy Pery moving on in her lovelife, or how Think Like a Man top every box office over the weekend? Tough call. If this post sounds broad and brutal, I'm almost sorry, but I'm not feeling the best of days right now. All this controlled hostility is derived from frustration from the world around me. As I fight the urge to draft and post a  woe-is-me-sob-sob entry, I know that I'm not the only one having a tough day today. Also, I could be doing more productive things with myself, like my poetry chapbook. This joint is almost completed and I'm just too excited for words. I've been editing and re-editing and re-re-rediting more times than I care to remember. It's just anxiety and excitement (and possibly too much ice cream). I have to apologize again because I know I'm about to veer off into a different direction in the post again.

"Kids will be kids." "It's a right of passage." Stop lying to me and stop lying to yourselves! If it's not that big of a deal, why are hundreds of kids taking their own lives at the peak of puberty? Schools, the workplace and social media are some places where bullying is making a popular trend. Wait, let me take that back. There is nothing popular about this because the violence and deaths are starting to spark attention. It's awful that blood has to be shed in order to acknowledge an ageless problem. As if the world doesn't have enough problems, bullycide is another problem/issue/epidemic that we humans have to analyze. Bullycide is the reaction to atempt suicide triggered by ruthless bullying from peers and associated depression, according to Joyce Bender . It surprises me that people who are so unhappy with their situations in life contrive clever ways to harass, dehumanize, and devalue another innocent human being just for a hobby. At the sa

Most people who know me know I'm a Jackson fan. Michael, Janet, Jermaine, Marlon...all of them have songs that have been added to my life's soundtrack. It was no surprise to me when I started hearing about Austin Brown. I just did a post on this talented musician in Stimulation Status Magazine  and I just can't believe the overall sound that comes out of this man. As he states in his interviews with AOL and Lopez Tonight, he combines elements from Stevie Wonder to the Four Tops to the Jackson 5ive and amps it up with his creativity and energy. Personally, "All I Need" is on my list of wedding songs. I could sit here and blog about how much of a powerful force music can be and is to many individuals, but as I sit here bouncing in between "All I Need" and "Menage a Trois," with people watching me nod my head at the library, I really just wanna dance. I can't wait for 85 to drop, but I have no choice. If there is one quality that every Ja