*UPDATED EVERY WEEK!*

Thursday, November 30, 2006

WHY?

Life is full of questions, and with my inquisitive mind, I've come up with a few for you. Somebody please tell me:

*WHY....is gas STILL as high today, as it was last year?

*WHY....can't we foresee the end of this war, and normal gas prices in our immediate
future?

*WHY....have we not seen any positive results from this war?

*WHY....must we sit back quietly, while our brothers and sisters are overseas putting
their lives on the line while our government gouges us with high gas prices?

*WHY....is our cost of living & minimum wages rising, but our quality of life
declining? We spend sooo much time working, that we can't seem to enjoy
any extra money we earn with wage increases.

*WHY....is every major freeway under construction, to compensate for the overcrowding
California, STILL not yielding any positive results?

*WHY....are racially motivated police beatings & shootings happening in waves? It
seems like once one event becomes public, multiple stories emerge.

*WHY....do people act surprised when 'now captive' animals attack their trainers?
Why should these animals be punished because of their survival instincts?

*WHY....are relationships so hard to maintain?

*WHY....is the one you love, the same one you hate...but can't seem to get away
from?

*WHY....do you become more desirable once you're in a committed relationship?

*WHY....can't you seem to BUY a date when you're single?

*WHY....can't we just be HAPPY????

Monday, November 27, 2006

My Imagination

Being that I'm a Pisces (and I'm sure all of you other Pisces out there can agree with me), I have a very wild and very vivid imagination, and one of the two things that I like to fantasize mostly about is winning the lottery. Now, don't take this short-story as a hidden message, cause I am BROKE ;-), but I just wanted to share one of my many Aimless Thoughts with you.

I've often talked about, and wondered along with my family, about how life would be if I was to hit the big-one. I've often gone as far as doing the math (taxes) and deciding who I would give money to, and how much, and everytime that I've mentioned the 'giving money part' to my family members, I've gotten the same answer every time. "You shouldn't have to worry about who you're giving money to! It's yours, and IF you decide to give money to whomever, they should be happy with whatever you give them, because they didn't have whatever you gave them to begin with", which could be true, but is NOT at all. If I was to win 1-million dollars/$600K after taxes (give or take), and ONLY gave my closest family members something like $5-$6K each, and bought myself a BMW 745Li (Charcoal Gray...my favorite car...which is $80K by the way), they would have a fit!!! There's no way they'd feel comfortable with me driving an $80K car, while they're still in debt, but only $5-$6K richer. They'd have something to say, and you know I'm right.

People always seem to say the noble thing when there's no real money involved, but when you actually get that money in your possession....things change. It's so bad with me and my friends that there have been times when I may have found $50 or so at work, and they wanted me to treat them to lunch and put gas in their pacers....I'm not feeling that! I'm the nicest person that anyone would ever want to meet, but I'm no push-over. Just because I found the money doesn't mean that it's a free-for-all. I may not have 'earned it', but it's mine.

Now, what would I do if I did win the big-one? I would definitely give my family and closest friends some cool loot, but I would not relieve them of their debts, and I would not buy all of them cars. I'm not going to go broke trying to be a good friend to you, but I would give enough to make sure that they didn't hate me and my good luck....but I would have my 745 ;-). I would definitely retire my mom and dad, and I would make sure that my little brother was able to get himself somewhere to live, cause I would definitely have my own place!!! ;-) Other than the basics like shopping and vacationing, I would seriously invest, and NEVER WORK FOR SOMEONE ELSE AGAIN!!! I would retire! What would y'all do if you hit the big-one? I would love to see if your imagination is anything like mine. Leave a comment if you'd like.

Friday, November 24, 2006

Ten Truths about Our People (pt. 4 of 5)

These were sent to me from a close friend of mine.
They are just jokes, so let's all laugh and be happy.

TEN TRUTHS WHITE, BLACK, NATIVE AMERICAN AND ASIAN PEOPLE
KNOW, BUT HISPANIC PEOPLE WON'T ADMIT:

1. Tattoos are not attractive.
2. Chicken is food, not a roommate.
3. Jesus is not a name for your son.
4. Your country's flag is not a car decoration.
5. Cars are not meant to touch the ground.
6. "Jump out and run" is not in any insurance policies.
7. Ten people to a car is considered too many.
8. You're in America, you speak our language.
9. Mami and Papi can't possibly be the nickname of every
person in your family.
10.Letting your children run wildly through the store is not
normal.

* What do y'all think? I think they are pretty funny,
and best of all, they're about ALL OF US, so let's not
get personally offended, and just laugh a little ;-) *

*Don't forget to check out my services offered at
www.mybusinesses.blogspot.com *

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

CRAZY MICHAEL RICHARDS!!

I'm quite sure that EVERYONE has heard about the racism of Mr. Michael Richards...Kramer from Seinfeld. This has to be the second most disgusting thing that I've heard/read since my last post about the Racist White Girl Group on the Billboard Charts (article link) ! Am I in the dark here, or is racism still prominent in our world? In the eyes of the Racist White Girl Group and Michael Richards...YES!!!







It is so sad how something so old and done can be reawakened by a failing actor and sorry comedian. Comedians have to know...coming into the field of comedy...that you're not going to be funny to everyone, and that you're gonna get heckled. It comes with the territory.

As a professional, you should be able to acknowledge the heckler, make a joke about him or her, then continue with your act. You are NOT supposed to lash out at the heckler with racial slurs! What is wrong with you!!!? Are you such a loser that because your act sucks, and everyone came to see "Kramer" as opposed to Michael Richards, that you have to result to calling Black men "Niggers" and Latinos "Wet-Backs",etc.?

His actions are totally disgraceful, and he should be banned from t.v....PERIOD! In a moment of rage, and embarrassment, he has just destroyed his career and put the reputations of his close friends on the line. You know the old saying. 'birds of a feather, flock together'. Now, everyone is gonna start looking at Seinfeld and the cast of the show...and all of his friends kinda sideways.

If you are at all unfamiliar with what took place, this past Sat...or Sunday night at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood, Ca. (I think), Michael Richards (Kramer from Seinfeld) was on stage performing his weak comedy act. An African American heckler in the audience was giving him trouble because of his tired act, when Richards lost his composure, (and his mind) and started calling the heckler a 'Nigger' and said racist statements like...'you can't talk like this to a white man'....and 'if I had it my way, you'd be hanging from a tree, with a pitch-fork in your ass!' That is absolutely disgusting, and totally immoral!! If he is EVER hired for another t.v. show or movie, that should immediately let you know where the hiree stands. He/she may be a racist as well. It's so sad, yet so true.

As a black man, I am totally offended, and just as upset when I posted the article about the Racist White Girl Music Group. When is it all going to stop!? Does anyone have an answer?

You can see the video at www.tmz.com or by going to www.youtube.com and typing in Michael Richards in the search box.

Sunday, November 19, 2006

Ten Truths about Our People (pt.3 of 5)

I would just like to say that before you read these,
just know that:

*1. They were sent to me from a close friend of mine, and
*2. They are just jokes!!!

If you look at the series, this is part 3 of 5.
Parts 1 & 2 were about different races, and they
were jokes as well. So please, view these "Truths" with an
open mind, and comical spirit. Enjoy.

TEN TRUTHS WHITE, HISPANIC, NATIVE AMERICAN AND BLACK PEOPLE
KNOW, BUT ASIAN PEOPLE WON'T ADMIT:
1. You can't drive!
2. Disneyland is not the happiest place on earth.
3. The peace sign is outdated.
4. Rice is not a main course.
5. Taking pictures is fun. Taking pictures of strangers
is just weird.
6. Feet were meant to grow.
7. You need girls just as much as you need boys.
8. Dogs were meant to be pets, not eaten.
9. You don't need above a 4.0 to graduate.
10. Fanny packs are not an accessory.

Thursday, November 16, 2006

NEW BUSINESS

Hello to all of my loyal and faithfull (and new) readers! I would like to take a short moment to welcome all of you to my new BUSINESS BLOG! I have 3 different businesses that I am involved in that I'd like to share with you that is VERY LIKELY to be beneficial for you, and/or your friends and family.

Please take a moment to click on the link in the right column entitled MY BUSINESSES, or just click on the link at the bottom of this post. Over time, my blog will change with lots more business ventures that WILL BE helpful and beneficial to you, so stay tuned, and please sign up for my FREE RSS Syndication feeds, and feel free to leave your comments. Also, don't hesitate to contact me via email at nethedd@yahoo.com if you have any personal questions or inquiries. I will be MORE THAN HAPPY to help you with ANY, and ALL of your needs.

Thank you for all of your continued support.
www.mybusinesses.blogspot.com

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

I made Time....for The TIME!!

Long Beach, Ca.

The Queen Mary

The BIG Trade & Fashion Show with special guest....Morris Day and The TIME!! A gala event that was supposed to be just like the movies, but sadly, was not. The event was HEAVILY advertised ALL OVER THE RADIO for weeks, so naturally, I expected a BIG turn-out....NOT!!

Don't get me wrong. The crowd was there, and the Fashion and models were right where they needed to be, but something was missing. Was it the aura...no. The people....no. What about the unique "fashion" on display that NOBODY ever wears.....no. Then, what was it? It was the movie type setting and barrage of Paparazzi that was missing.

You know, usually, in the movies, the cat-walk is really big and white, highlighted with curtains and spotlights and maybe a podium with a stiff announcer in a suit and glasses, while the barrage of Paparizzi surrounding the stage nearly blind the models with snap-shots. This however wasn't the case.

As far as the crowd goes...yeah, there was one....but not in full force, especially considering how much radio advertising they did. They could have saved themselves a lot of money by not putting us in the ballroom-type section that they had us in. There were three floors available for the crowd, but they could have just put us on one...but I guess it's better to be safe than sorry.

You would think that for only $20 a ticket, that more people would take a chance and show up, but then again, for only $20 bucks, I should have known better. It's just that I had this movie-type fantasy in my mind of what a fashion show should be. I had my camera ready and everything....you know...to take pics for my Cam-Ateur Project. With the exception of the two guys on the cat-walk floor, I was the only serious photographer there. That's pretty sad for an Annual BIG Trade & Fashion Show.

Anyway, as the night grew older and colder, when we almost thought we couldn't stand to be there much longer, out came our salvation....Mr. Morris Day and The TIME!! I've truly got to say that after all these years, that group has STILL GOT IT!!! They put on a hell of a show! They were all tight, and perfectly in synch. It was like watching them perform next to Prince in 'Purple Rain' all over again. They did all the classics (Jungle Love, Gigolos get Lonely Too, etc.), and even invited the crowd on stage for a little group participation. Because of them, it went from a somewhat dull and daunting night, to a party under the moonlight. Even in 3-piece suits, they got the job done. I'm maybe 15 years younger than The TIME, but I KNOW I would have been sweating twice as hard. Youth does not always equal physical fitness, and Morris Day and The TIME proved it in full force on the Gray Ghost (Queen Mary). I don't know if I'll ever attend another one of these low-budget-type fashion shows, but if Morris Day and The TIME is going to be there again, I might consider it.

If you'd like to see the pics of The BIG Trade & Fashion Show, and Morris Day and The TIME, check out The Cam-Ateur Project by clicking the link below

picsbyahmed.fotopic.net.

Friday, November 10, 2006

Ten Truths about Our People (pt.2 of 5)

These are just a few truths about us, that we NEED reminders of ;-)

TEN TRUTHS WHITE, HISPANIC, NATIVE AMERICAN AND ASIAN PEOPLE
KNOW, BUT BLACK PEOPLE WON'T ADMIT:

1. O.J. did it!
2. Tupac is dead!
3. Teeth should NOT be decorated.
4. Ranch is a salad dressing, not a side dish.
5. Your pastor doesn't know everything.
6. Jesse Jackson will never be President.
7. RED is not a Kool-Aid flavor, it's a color.
8. Church does not require expensive clothes.
9. Crown Royal bags are meant to be thrown away.
10. Your rims and sound system should not be worth more than your car.

I must admit that every time I read these, I can't help but to agree. But you know, #3 & #10 is just black people's way to shine. We already do not have much, as it is, so we have to highlight what was God given (our teeth). Not saying that I would ever do anything like that, but I understand. As far as #10 goes....been there, done that...but never no more ;-)

Hope you enjoyed the truths.

Tuesday, November 07, 2006

Gilligan's...I mean Catalina Island

Juuuuussst sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a tiny ship.....that's the first thing that comes to mind when I think of the last time I went to Catalina Island. I swear, the last time me and my ex went to Catalina, the season was changing, as well as the weather.

When it was time for us to leave, we gathered all of our luggage, took the last shots we could take with our disposable Kodak, and headed towards the dock. When I saw the S.S.Minnow (our tiny ship) approaching, my heart started racing, and it seemed to be in rhythm with the Gilligan's Island theme song. When the song says that the 'tiny ship was tossed', they meant it! If they were going to film a 2001 version of Gilligan's Island, they could have used our ship for the intro.

That little ship was all over the place!!! I've NEVER seen a ship tossed from side-to-side so easily. Honestly, I never knew a ship could be tossed like that. I've seen it on t.v., but, that's tv. It's not supposed to be real...or so I thought.

When we finally got on the ship, and headed back towards Long Beach, we were rocking so badly that I thought we were going to flip over. My ex and I did our best to keep our heads down, and refuse the barf-bags the shipmates were handing out...cause if we would have taken them, we would have felt the urge to hurl....and that wasn't gonna happen. We did, however, try to test our sea-legs, and go to the rest room. We're young and strong, so we should be able to handle the rocking of the ship...so we thought. She gets up, and BOOM hits the floor like a sack of potatoes. She composes herself, and crawls to the restroom. Then comes my turn. I'm thinking, I'm a man. I'm strong. I can handle it. I get up to walk to the restroom, the boat rocks, and I tumble like a t-shirt in the dryer. Man, I rolled all over the boat! So much for my manlyness. That had to be the craziest experience I've ever had.

Fast forward to 11-05-06...Sun. Me and my lady decide to go to Catalina for a hike. It was her first time, so it was going to be an adventure for her. Me, once again, trying to be 'the man' took the role as our tour guide. Seeing as how the Island isn't that big, I felt no need to get a map. I figured I'd just wing-it, and get us to the top of the mountain to start our hike on the trail next to Wrigley Memorial.

Not remembering how long it takes to get to the top of the mountain without riding the trolley, we start walking. It had to be at least a 70 degree day on a 2+ mile walk uphill at about a continuous 45 degree angle....for an hour! Man that sucked!! I felt like a total man, but not in the good way. I felt like the typical man that THINKS he knows everything about everything, but soon realized that I sucked!

We had really been focused on going on the trail.....but not after hiking up the hill for 2+ miles. Now, I'm at the point where I can't be a quitter. The hill wasn't the 'trail', and we didn't pay our money to try to go hiking on the trail, and end up substituting it by walking up the hill due to my manly arrogance.

After our long trek, we make it to Wrigley Memorial to rest for a minute or two, then head up the trail. Happy to say, we did conquer the trail, but coming down was a bit of a nightmare. The hills were so steep at some points, which caused us to run down a little, which wouldn't have been so bad if we hadn't wasted so much energy hiking up the hill in the first place...but anyway ;-).

We finally finish our hike, and make it down to the bottom of the trail to make our way towards the Trolley pick-up so we could ride back down to Island civilization. We stop at the top of Wrigley Memorial so I could take a few more pics, when we see a Trolley. We head down the hill to wait for the next one, but soon realize that the one we just saw (and missed) was the LAST TROLLEY FOR THE DAY!!!! Man, what a nightmare!!!

After sitting on the bench and resting for 20 minutes, and confirming that another Trolley wasn't coming (no thanks to the W.M. booth lady), we pull our boots up, and head BACK down the hill. By this time, we are hurting, and ready to just lay down and cry. We're walking slow (not by choice), but we're trying to find the energy to get down the hill cause our boat was leaving in an hour....and it didn't look like we were going to make it by walking. After a few feet, our Knights in a Shining White Golf Cart (the Island's mode of transportation) comes to our rescue!!! There was a couple that rode the same boat we were on when we came to the Island in the morning. They saw us, and could easily see that we were spent.....and offered us a ride. I have NEVER jumped into a car with strangers so fast in my life, but I'd do it again in a heartbeat to avoid walking down that hill again! Man I love the good nature of people ;-)

Needless to say, and to sum it all up, we made it to our boat in time, got some comfortable seats and floated peacefully back home. It was an adventure within an adventure, but I'd do it all over again if I had the chance.

See the photos HERE!

Thursday, November 02, 2006

Too Picky for my Own Good

I don't know if it's that I'm spoiled, or that I have access to too much, or not enough financial responsibilties cause I'm already in the market for a new camera. Just two month's ago, I bought two Kodak Digital Cameras which are great, but I'm a spoiled geek. Once I got the cameras, I was intrigued and fascinated with how they function, and now that I've figured them out, I am no longer just a Freelance Creative Writer for hire, I'm moving towards the field of Freelance Event Photography, so you know what that means...I NEED a professional camera!!!.....but I'm not rich, so now here comes the dilema. I have to try to sell my Kodaks first, to come up with at least half of what I will need to purchase the Nikon Camera that I NEED/want (typical guy to say that I need something, when in reality, I'm just spoiled) to even consider myself a photographer.

I'm not bragging or anything, but I think I may have a handle on this writing thing. I've always been pretty good at speaking, so transferring my thoughts onto paper/my blogs is a walk in the park...pretty easy. Basically, all I do is talk to myself as I'm trying to write....good thing I payed attention in typing class in high-school, huh? Now, I have to get a handle on the photography game. What do I do:

Step One: Buy a Pro/Semi-Pro Camera. Where am I going to get the money for that....anyone interested in buying two Kodak cameras? The price is unbelievable, and I'll ship it to you too (for free)...if you're close. Check out my temporary 'for sale' blog at www.camerasforsale.blogspot.com (simple enough, huh?)

Step Two: Start circulating the business cards that I've already created (I'm already one step ahead of the game...see how determined I am). The only problem that I've encountered with that is there was a FREE dog parade around Long Beach (15 minutes away from my home) that I wanted to attend to get some practice shots, build my portfolio and hand out some cards. I thought ahead to contact the person organizing the parade and ask if I could take random photos (just to be on the safe side, and not waste the gas [you already know how expensive gas is] driving down there). He said yes....for a small fee of $175. WHAT!!!! You've got to be kidding me! In order to take shots, and publicize (did I spell that right?) your FREE (you see how I keep highlighting FREE?) dog parade, you want me to pay to play...you've got to be crazy. He said, if you're taking photos for Press purposes, it would be free, but if you were out there to take photos to sell, and hand out cards, you would have to pay. Needless to say, I didn't get any close-up shots of Rex. So, what am I to do......

Step Three: I'm going to have to continue with my photo blog (With Every Blink) and my photosharing gallery (picsbyahmed.fotopic.net) to showcase my growing talent, and try to solicit my event photos to ALL the car/sports and Event magazines and websites....what a nightmare! Well, if anything is worth while, you're gonna have to earn it....trust me, I know. Maybe that's why I spoil myself...cause I have to work sooooo hard to get any little thing I want ;-(

Anyway, I thought I'd share another Aimless Thought with y'all. If you know of any Cali/Orange County based Events that need photographers (cheap) let me know ;-)

Wish me luck!!!