Cruising the web today and came across the following insightful essay on Zena’s site that she reposted from the July issue of O, the Oprah Magazine. The essay was written by Chris Abani - an award-winning author / poet from Nigeria.

It’s probably one of the more thoughtful, revealing and well-phrased ‘confessions’ about how men think and view themselves in the context of a relationship…which is why I thought I’d share it with you.
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I’m stressed, driving in gruesome holiday traffic on Roswell road, trying to keep my nostrils from flaring. I cannot believe that I locked myself outta the house! Somewhere between leaving a key for my visiting guests and numerous wardrobe and purse changes over the last couple of days, I managed to leave both my spare and my regular house key inside the house. Now I’m driving across town to pick up the spare spare when I should be headed out of town for my relaxing weekend vacation in the mountains. GRRRRR!!

Heading up to the Georgia mountains is something I’ve done at least once a year since my senior year in college. Of course the Georgia mountains are nothing like those out west, they’re more like impressively large hills by comparison. But I always relish the opportunity to leave the smog and traffic of the city behind and immerse myself in nature and a much slower pace of existence for a few days. I try to focus on this idea instead of on the cuss-words I’d like to hurl at this guy tap-dancing on his brake pedal in front of me. My inner voice pipes up, “Be easy. In only a few hours, you’ll be practicing zazen from a rocking chair on the front porch of a charming cabin”. It’s enough to keep me sane for a bit longer.

Here’s a few tips should you need an escape to sanity as well.

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I leave for Canada tomorrow night for a 4.5 day work trip and I’m already feeling a little homesick.Wait. Don’t say it. I know what you’re thinking.
What? The urban bohemian that loves to stay on the go, and longs to see the world is reluctant to leave home?

It’s kind of funny, but my starting this blog also marked the start of a new relationship with this city, so my imminent departure feels sort of like the first extended absence from a new beau. To ease the pain of parting, I decided to spend the last bit of my weekend in town at one of my more recent favorite finds – Cameli’s Pizza.

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Did anyone happen to catch Black in America on CNN last night?

Last night was the 2nd installment in the groundbreaking series presented by CNN that explores the current situation and issues facing African-Americans 40 years after the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

The first part of the series, entitled ‘Eyewitness to Murder: The King Assassination’ premiered back in April. Part 2 – ‘The Black Woman and Family’ aired last night and Part 3 – ‘The Black Man’ will premiere tonight at 9pm. The series is hosted by CNN’s Soledad O’Brien.

I usually cringe every time I hear about a show that strives to encapsulate the ‘black experience’ in the span of a few hours. Generally, I find such efforts either way too myopic or too sappy and trite, laden with a ‘we-shall-overcome-negro-spiritual’ tone that just seems outdated and irrelevant. So when I tuned in last night, I had a high amount of anticipation mixed with a healthy dose of skepticism.

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The gods of music have really been smiling on me as of late.

In the past few months, I’ve been engaging with more music heads, DJs, and just stumbling across a lot of new blogs and magazines that have helped me take my little music collection from respectable to downright formidable!

One recent gifting came from my new fam in Toronto, the lovely Gentle Aura, who gave me a copy of a Lars Behrenroth mix that has been in heavy rotation with me for the past few weeks. One track in particular, titled ‘Kissing Strangers’, seems to have irreversibly lodged itself in my brain.

It’s a classic, danceable house tune with an infectious mix by Frankie Feliciano, killer vocals from Monique Bingham, and a message that I’m sure all of us have related to at one point in our lives.

You can listen to the track on Imeem:
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or download the entire Lars mix featuring Kissing Strangers at Deeper Shades of House.

Here’s to kisses you can feel!

cheers,

k

Good lawd, it’s hot outside!

Looks like we’ve officially entered the dog days of summer here in Atlanta, and temps will consistently hover at mid-90 or more every day for at least another month. Most days, just the thought of eating is enough to make we want to break out into a profuse sweat, but it’s not exactly feasible to go on a fast ‘til September. During this time of year, I instinctively switch to lighter fare (read: white wine instead of red, LOL), but I still need something substantial enough to keep me from getting hungry again a few hours after I’ve eaten.

I was watching a recent episode of The Barefoot Contessa on DVR, and saw a delicious-looking preparation of a lobster Cobb salad, which Lady Ina served in hot dog buns. Talk about shabby chic, right? The recipe below is my adaption of Ina’s recipe – for budget purposes, I ‘shabbied’ the lobster for shrimp, and for presentation purposes, I ‘chic-ed’ the hot dog buns for whole wheat bolillo rolls.

This one is light, quick, and tasty enough that you’ll still be thinking about it a couple of days later. The recipe makes enough for about 4 sandwiches. Or if you like, you can skip the bread altogether, and just eat it as a salad.

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This year is the 20th anniversary of the cultural festival that showcases an amazing variety of works and artists from all different genres: dance, music, visual arts, theater, you name it, they got it. If you’re a fan of the arts in any way, the NBAF provides a one-of-a-kind opportunity to experience the African-American arts scene in an up-close and interactive way.There’s so much good stuff going on, I have no idea how I’m going to fit all the things I want to see / hear / do in, but dammit I intend to try. If this weekend was any indicator, I’ve got my work cut out for me.Below are some of the events that I plan on checking out over the next few days, followed by a longer listing of other events gleaned from the NBAF’s Highlights Guide.For more information, visit the NBAF’s website at http://www.nbaf.org. Or add them as a friend on Facebook or Myspace Hope to see you out and about!

Ksolo’s NBAF Itinerary:
July 18 - Jazz at the High NBAF Edition & Latin Dance Party
July 19 - Hot Ice International Groove Lounge; www.centerstage-atlanta.com
July 25 - Art, Beats, and Lyrics; Foundry at Puritan Mills; www.occasionalsuperstar.com/abl/
July 25, 26, 27 - World Music Festival at Centennial Olympic Park; Free (codeword: It’s Going DOWN)
Through Aug 1 – Carrie Mae Weems, “Constructing History: A Requiem to Mark the Moment”; Free
through August 10: Young Americans – Photographs by Sheila Pree Bright
Road to Freedom – Photographs of the Civil Rights Movement; www.woodruffcenter.org 

Other NBAF Highlights:
July 25 - Vinx and the Soul Kitchen Redux ; Hyatt Hotel, $15
July 26 - Follow the Sun Carnival (great for kids!)
July 26 - FunkJazz Kafé; www.funkjazzkafe.com ; $25
through July 27 - Something Like A Fahamenon; www.fahamupecouart.com/FAHAMENON
through August 3 – “The Amen Corner”; www.truecolorstheatrecompany.com or
through August 3 - “Oprah Winfrey Presents The Color Purple”; www.theaterofthestars.com/colorpurple

cheers,

k

Earlier this week, I listened to a spot on NPR about the tensions between Latinos and blacks in post-Katrina New Orleans. During the piece, the correspondent spoke with a Colombian entrepreneur living in New Orleans who shared some of her concerns about what might happen if Barack Obama was elected president. Apparently, she was convinced that if that occurred, black people would basically declare open season on Latinos, robbing them in the streets.

She made sure to note, however, that she wasn’t racist.

Uh-huh.
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