Note2Self-byPharaoh

Self,
I feel rather bad right now.  I know it has been a while since I last posted.  I can't say that a lot has happen of any major significance.  I just been busy.
I didn't quite get into the Christmas spirit of things,  I mean It was Christmas Day when I realized that I forgot to do my "Twelve Days of Christmas" here on the blog.
I did cook Christmas dinner for my immediate family which was cool. and I did get to see a few of my extended family/friends. All that to say that I didn't have a horrible Christmas or anything.  It was rather low-key ...after I finished all the baking and cooking.  The day after Christmas I barely got out of bed and spent most of the day on the sofa watching Christmas themed movies on the Hallmark and Lifetime channels with my parents.

As for New Years Eve, I don't have any major plans as of yet, I want to go see either Stephanie Mills or Rahsaan Patterson. However Stephanie is performing in a place that's nearly 2 hours away and I dont know if I want to make the drive home at 2am.  Meantime the ticket for Rahsaan is starting at $145.  I may actually spend the evening planning and my 2011.

Be Blessed Y'all.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

Self,

Meet Matt, 2011 Rundu Calendar Cover Man

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Well Sade is touring and they have already announced that she will be here in Los Angeles in August of 2011. Apparently the first show is sold out. I want to go, but for some reason I feel that I shouldn't go alone....ie that I should be going with a boyfriend (life partner; lover; etc etc,) even though I don't actually have one currently.

I am 500% sure there are going to be a bunch of folks hugged up, kissing, and giving each other the googly eye all through out the show. Yes, I've been to concerts before by myself, so on one hand it really isn't an issue. However, I know that unfortunately, seeing all that under those circumstances will make me feel some kind of way. And although I am raising it as a point of concern here....most likely I will just go by myself and have a blast! Fuck dem bitches!

Sincerely,
Pharoah

Self,

I had another enjoyable weekend. Friday night I went to see "For Colored Girls" with my Ex (who I will now refer to as Saint Angel, because I think he was named for both a Saint and an Angel.) I must say I enjoy myself whenever we get together, that has been the case for years. I'm pleased to see he is making an effort to be more social. But there are a few hurdles to clear still.

Saturday I didn't really do much I did the grandparent-sitting which wasn't that hard. What was hard was receiving a call from a friend who had been in a car accident on Friday. Fortunately, he is ok. The difficult thing is that it seems the accident is going to cause some financial hardships for him and delay some other goals he has for himself. I wish there was more I could do for him than just be an sympathetic ear.

Sunday I went to see Ledisi in concert...I love this woman! She is a dynamic artist on stage. The house was PACKED!!!! I managed to sneak a quick video to share with y'all. However it doesn't seem to want to upload here.

Then Monday, I happen to be off and decide to make it a day to take care of some things. The top of that list was getting Thunderbolt a SMOG check in order to register it with the DMV. SO I took him to the mechanic, the same one I have seen almost every other month since May. the last time I took Thunderbolt to the shop I had an oxygen sensor problem that was replaced and I was told I had to drive the car a while before I can do the smog check but everything is fine. So I figured that this trip was going to only cost me about $50. WHY then was it $600? Apparently, the diagnostic computer found another sensor that was faulty. My mechanic said he could run the test but it would fail unless I replaced this other sensor. So I did and now I'm in the poor house! I immediately informed my friend who was in the car accident that we are in the same boat. The boat being is just as you think things are in an "up swing" something comes along to cut the rope. After I dealt with my car, they took my grandmother to the Emergency room. Fortunately she is home and is doing well....I wasn't told what the diagnosis was in her case.

Anyway that's just my life.

Sincerely,
Pharoah

Self,

I've been on the go and quite a few things have been happening.....I can't go over it all but here's a short list.

I found out one of the local malls have hosted a couple free concerts. So last month I was able to go see Rahsaan Patterson.



A nice sized group of us managed to come get together amonst the crowd that came to support him. And we had a good time.... however, He DID NOT do one of my favorite songs of his (So Hot) but I'll live. I guess that means I have to pay to hear him do that one live. However Vesta and Rachelle Farrel made and appearance to belt out a few bars with him so I really can't complain. There was also an artist I don't know (yet) named Sy Smith, (I think she had did a show in the mall a few weeks prior to Rahsaan.) And it was anounced that in the audience to see Rahsaan was Michel'le.

I believe I mentioned that not too long a go an Ex contacted me and wanted to see if we can kinda start anew. So as part of that endever we went to see this movie that I have been hearing about on the Steve Harvey Morning Radio Show. The Show is promoting the movie because one of its members is the cast of the film, the movie is called N-Secure. It was not the greatest...but we got to support our black filmmakers so the Hollywood elites will continue to give them a shot. My Mistress said "It should have been a straight to DVD....It would not have made it better, but that's what it was." Hey it at least got a theatrical release.

I have also seen RED, starring Bruce Willis, Morgan Freeman and a few other. I enjoyed this one a lot. LOL there were some part that had me howling with laughter. I have to share the scene that I thought was the funniest.Willis is trying to sneak into the CIA headquater with his love interest, Mary-Louise Parker, he tells her the only two ID badges they he was able to obtain to get them inside were for a military general and a female PhD physicist. She reads the name on the badge out loud as to question the validity of the name, "Shenika Johnson." With out looking at her, he says "You were adopted." Then she looks back at the badge and simply says "Okay." I screamed. (Luckily there weren't that many other people there because it was an early show.)

Just last night the same mall where I saw Rahsaan perform hosted a show for Lalah Hathaway.

Another enjoyable show. She sounded good, she had a background vocalist that was cutting it up! Vesta and Rachelle Farrel also made stage appearances with Lalah. The group of folks that I knew at this even was a bit smaller than last time but the crowd was still full and energetic.

Ok so that's the skinny...

Love,
Pharaoh

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,


Well first off it seems like i'm going to keep having cycles of being a vagabond so I decided to give these posts their own tag.


So since July 7th I've been staying with a pair of friends (who are a couple) in her house. This was a rare situation since she have three kids who happen to be traveling with their father (her Ex-husband.) That week I really only stayed with them for two nights before I returned home for the weekend. However, this week I'm staying four nights, plus his son is spending the week there too. So I wanted to do something for them to show my appreciation for letting me make their place base camp for 6 nights. So I decided that I would make dinner last night.

The menu:
Fried Chicken
sauted spinach with mushrooms and garlic
rice pilaf (Uncle Ben's I wasn't going overboard.)


I stopped by the house before going to the store to see what was there that I could use before going to buy what i would need. I happen to catch them before they left to go to a park so my friend's son could play in the wading pool. The lady of the house had bought a couple peaches for the two guys and I happen to be there while they were eating them. They smelled really good which led to a conversation about chocolate dipped fruit being really good. So I had the idea of trying to have fondue for dessert, with strawberries, bananas and peaches, of course.




So I go to the store and get everything for our meal, but nixed the bananas for angel food cake pieces. I'll admit I had never done fondue at home, so I wasn't sure exactly what I was doing but I figure there had to be a quick & easy way to do it. This is when I thought about just melting chocolate chip morsels, so I go to that aisle to see my options. Well, I get the idea that it would be REALLY delicious (and a bit special) if I got white chocolate chips add some rum flavor and cinnamon, so that's what I bought. (Ok I went a little overboard.)


Dinner was REALLY GOOD! I took a suggestion from Double D and soaked my chicken in a quart of buttermilk for like 30 minutes. (Out of 20 wings, there was only 3 left...granted the lady of the house's twin sister dropped by just in time to join us, but still.) Of course I took some liberties and was a little creative with seasoning the flour that I used to coat the meat.


Anyway we eat dinner on the patio in the backyard. Although the sun had set and there's not much light, it had cooled off so it felt nice to be outside. So although we are all full....everyone was looking forward to dessert so my friend and I go inside to get it ready. He washed and sliced all the fruit and I started melting the chocolate in the double boiler.


I don't know why but the chocolate melted but it never like liquified to become smooth, it just changed shape from the morsel to clumps. So to all of our disappointment (though nobody held it against me) we just had fruit and cake pieces for dessert.


I think I figured out what went wrong, when the chocolate started melting, I think I got ahead of myself and poured in a little milk right out of the frig with the intention of it helping to thin it out a bit to make it manageable for dipping. In my haste, I forgot one of the cardinal rules of cooking;


NEVER ADD SOMETHING COLD TO HOT ITEMS COOKING ON THE STOVE!


I think the sudden change in temperature of the chocolate prevented it from melting the way I wanted and expected. So I'll be trying this again a few time to see if I can get it right!



Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

There two things that I heard about that just makes me shake my head at the idiocy of folks.

I got here to work and went on to the AOL homepage and a news headline caught my eye. It was a brief article about this "Barefoot Bandit" that was apprehended over the weekend in the Bahamas. Apparently this 19 year old boy is responsible for hundreds burglaries, the theft of several airplanes and a yacht. He has been on the run for over two years! The part that is disturbing is that in the ongoing war between stupidity and intelligence/common & moral sense, this is a victory for stupidity. This boy's shenanigans has caused him to have a huge internet following on sites like Facebook, some reporting to have over 100,000 members. Proof again, Facebook is the devil.

The other thing that worked my nerves over the weekend was the LeBron James and Cavaliers fiasco. I mean...Really? I can understand everyone being upset that the man decided to try his luck with a different team, in so much as they being disappointed that they are loosing a good player, but for "fans" to burn jerseys and all that is just pathetic. I mean it's as if these peoples self-worth are wrapped up in these Companies. Please believe that that is exactly what the sport franchises are, CORPORATIONS. The only "team" are the guys that are on the court, but everything that happens in the head office is all business.

The fact that everything in the head office is a matter of business, makes Dan Gilbert's, the Cavaliers' owner, reaction most idiotic and asinine of all. Of course, James' decision to play on the Miami Heat was "selfish," it is HIS FREAKIN' CAREER. If Gilbert was being offered $2.5 billion dollars for the Cavaliers to move from Cleveland to Tulsa, Oklahoma, he would not give a crap about fan and the residents of Cleveland or the rest of Ohio for that matter, because he would be doing what he thought was in the best interest for him and his career/business. So for him to hold it against James for doing the same thing is just stupid. At the same time, in say 10 years when James is a little bit older and a maybe little bit slower or possibly injured, Gilbert probably wouldn't even consider James' "loyalty" to the team, if there was an opportunity for him to trade James to some other team for some new hot young player(s). On top of that, James would most likely, hear about him (and his family) being uprooted to another city in a freakin' press conference with the rest of the world, and not from a personal conversation with Gilbert.

I need sport fans to come back to the real world and remember that LeBron James is no different from them in the sense that James is simply an employee of Cleveland Cavaliers, INC. (Reality dose y'all, this goes for any player on any sports team.) James didn't do anything wrong by exercising his right to discontinue employment at one job to start at a new one. It would be no different than an employee leaving Microsoft for Apple; Panasonic for Sony; Disney for Universal; Warner Brothers for MGM, Arista for Hidden Beach or hell McDonald's for Burger King. Stop your crying. Get over it.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

P.S. I think the most accurate description of Gilbert's reaction to James deciding to go to Miami comes from Rev. Jesse Jackson. This is copied from an article I came across online this morning;

"He speaks as an owner of LeBron and not the owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers," the reverend said in a release from his Chicago-based civil rights group, the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. "His feelings of betrayal personify a slave master mentality. He
sees LeBron as a runaway slave."

Self,

Self,


I've made statements about moving back home with my parents and the reasons for doing so. As part of trying to figure out how to make it all work out I have been investigating other commute options for work. So on Wednesday of last week, I tried one of these options, The Metro Transit System.

Although, using public transportation is an adventure in itself, except to New Yorkers for whom its a way of life, in this case it's not the focus of the adventure. Riding the Los Angeles subway system allowed me to attend a free performance by recording artist, Goapele, in one of the outdoor corporate office plazas in downtown LA. She did a good job. For fans, she has a new project that is due to be released this summer, so look out for it.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

I'm sure most folks know that the 2010 BET Awards aired on Sunday night. My mom and aunt turned it on to watch in the family room while we were having dinner.

I couldn't believe I was watching it. I kept zoning out thinking about the episodes of Boondocks that commented that BET was evil and trying to destroy the African-american community. I don't know how to feel...part of me felt the Boondocks is right...watching this show was madness. At teh same time I am somewhat pleased to know that there those out there honoring our musically talented individuals (not everyone signed with a record label is a musician.) I think realistically I watched about 30 minutes. I saw Queen Latifah open the show, a bit of Alicia Keyes individual performance, and the tribute performances to Prince for his lifetime achievement award. Otherwise I was running for the hills for something else to watch...and that was ABC's "Scoundrels" which I actually like and "The Gates" which is slightly intriguing based on how they have written the 2 episodes I've seen so far...we'll see if "The Gates" can keep my attention.

Anyway did anyone else see the BET Awards, if so what did you think.

Self,

Ok I may be a little late with this and everyone has heard about this but I have to ask about it. I just saw a video clip about a new product/tool/device. It's female condom. Unlike other female condoms though this one has an internal set of hooks or "teeth" that are design to burrow into a male's penis if he rapes the woman. Obviously, this is suppose to be extremely painful to the man (a type of instant punishment,) supposedly while on the man will not be able to urinate, and it can only be removed by medical professionals.

Here's the link;
http://cnn.com/video/?/video/health/2010/06/21/seg.cohen.condom.teeth.cnn


So it hoped that this device will be a deterant to rapists. However the question was raised as to rather this instrument will give woman a false sense of security considering it can't actually PREVENT them from being raped, it just will allow a quicker response to issue justice.

The next question that I would raise is.... Could the use of this device lead to a rise in women being violently sodomized? And while we are talking about the posterior end of the human anatomy, could this condom work in the anus, and therefore could be used by men?

What are your thoughts on this?

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Self,

Well although I'm still staying at base-camp this week. This vagabond hasn't had much of an adventure lately. But this post isn't really about me.

I just wanted to write a short note recognizing that the first of my younger cousins on my mom's side of the family is now a High School graduate. The story is that she will be attending UC, Riverside in the fall. She is a graduate of California Academy of Math and Science. This is a very unique prestige school located on the campus of California State University of Dominguez Hills. She is the 3rd graduate that I know of from that school and like the ones before her, her association with the school will lead her to success.

Suffice it to say, we all are proud and we celebrated her achievement the evening of June 9, 2010. My only wish is that she was going away to school, rather than going to school locally.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

I know I'm gay....and I know many would assume that watching good looking men display athletic prowness and getting sweaty, to be a given pasttime for gay men.

However, I think the fanticism that people have toward sports is just madness. I'm at my parents house it's Game 2 of the NBA Finals (Lakers v. Celtics) and this house has come to a stand still except for me. There's all kinds of things to get done around here. My brother left his room in a mess. My mom hasn't finished some of the things that I need her to do in order for me to finish moving in to my "new" bedroom but all eyes are glued to the big flat screen TV in the family room. Chips and dips have been placed on the table and comfortable seats are being warmed by various glutius maximi (not sure of the plural.)

I mean let the Lakers (the household favorites) send me a check for the hours spent watching them....then it might make sense to me....but otherwise I don't get stopping in your tracks to watch...maybe it's just boring to me.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

Well Thursday was a bit out of the ordinary. The reason I was staying with N-V was because he was close to the Van Nuys office I was working in for the week. However Thrusday, I had to report to my usual office in Glendale for a writing class for work. Base-camp is actually just a little over halfway between the two offices but closer to Van Nuys than Glendale, which means it would take a little longer to get to the Glendale office from there and I have to be there earlier than I need to be at the Van Nuys office. I forgot to reset my alarm to account for the adjustment. Fortunately, there wasn't any traffic snags and I made up some time on the road.

The class wasn't what I expected, not sure I learned anything new since it was suppose to be about "technical writing" but it turned out to be more about how to make your writing more engaging. Anyway I only mention it because it was the reason I was back in Glendale. So after work, I went to the Coffee Bean there to get online. N-V was removing everything out of the basement and I told him I would be there by 5:30pm to help as much as I can.....I missed that mark by a lot. But when I finally did arrive, N-V and his Piece-de-jour were in the backyard. N-V had finished emptying the basement and was watering the plants, while Piece-de-jour was just keeping him company. I took a short breather and stuck my feet in the pool.

And really that was about it. Mr. One-date arrived and hong out for a bit the three of them when walking to exercise and ended up eating at the Thai BBQ place I had went to a couple days before. While they wer gone I just rested, took a hot shower and eventually went looking for another CB to get online. But that was kinda a bust since the battery on my laptop died and it seemed like none of these stores had accessible outlets. SO I just went back to base camp which is when I found out that their walked turned into dinner.

I let N-V know that was going to be my last night there, but he almost insisted that I come back next week. And depending on how things go at my parents over the weekend....I may take him up on it.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh

Self,

Self,

So I left off talking about the black dude talking to the white chick in the Coffee bean.

Anyway, I finish online and leave Coffee Bean. I call N-V to asking him for a recommendation for some food. he suggested a place not too far away but south of base-camp and the freeway. I make my way over to the place...only for it to appear closed for the night. I call for another suggestion and he comes up with Denny's...located about the same distance away but NORTH of base-camp. I decided to explore what else in where I am at before going to Denny's and luck up on Thai BBQ place that I give a shot, since Babybro said this could be an adventure.

I get back to base-camp just as N-V sends a text saying he went to Wal-mart using a car that belongs to a friend who is upstairs in N-V's room chilling with his boyfriend. LOL base-camp is turning into a cheap thrills motel...lol and I'm being left out. I eat my food and chill in my room playing music on the laptop. I hear N-V come through the door, so I meet him in the kitchen and we talk. I ask him about the hot water and he's shocked to hear about it so we walk through the house testing different faucets and apparently the kitchen and the "my" bathroom are on a seperate water heater than the rest of the house. During our conversation we work out that I can stay the rest of the week. He ask that one day while I'm staying there to take him to rent a ladder so he can clean the chanderlier and then remembers he needs to set the trash out. I go with him to do that and when we come back inside, the bedroom door at the top of the stairs open and two guys step out and begin making their way down the stairs. I realize that I recognize one of them. N-V gives introductions, they walk outside and I tell N-V that I know one of them...and that we went on a date once. N-V starts singing "It's a Small World After All."

Of course, the one I recognize is N-V's friend and he comes back inside from having walked his boyfriend out. What N-V tells me they both live with family so this was a chance for them to be alone together. The three of us chat, I catch up with Mr. One-date, who then leaves and we both decide it's time to bed and we go to our rooms. I get my stuff and go to one of the other bathrooms upstairs to take a good HOT shower! I return to my room and see that there is a text from N-V that reads "Note to [Pharaoh], - get Facebook." I see that not having Facebook is starting to become a running joke. I asked if how he online and he says he's using his damn iPhone. It seems you can do just about anything with those things....except drive.

I eventually drift off to sleep.

Sincerely,
Pharaoh