Castro Steps Down

The Man, the myth, the legend.

Fidel Castro, 81, stepped down yesterday. His health has been deteriorating for years now and it was inevitable that he'd be unable to continue on as El Jefe in the same light.

Will Cuba ever be the same? Only time will tell.

W says that this primes Cuba for Democracy. If so, we can say goodbye to the steadfast portrait Cuba has been for so long.

I'll remember Fidel the man instead of the trendy military hat with the short brim.

I'll always think of Cuba before SF when I hear "Castro".

Somewhere...Benicio Del Toro is finishing up one of his roles as Che and reading a script about Fidel.

I'll end with the lighter side of Fidel. Perhaps the nadir of his time in charge--the fall that was funny but so painful you didn't wanna laugh. Also, The Simpsons episode when Fidel learns that SF's gay district is called "The Castro".

That's Jamaal, with 2 A's

My name is Jamaal.

I spell it with 2 A's. It's uncommon but not unheard of--I mean I was named after Jamaal Wilkes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaal_Wilkes).

Before I go any further, I'll make a stop and hit you with some knowledge:

"Jamaal is a variant of Jamal. The boy's name Jamal \j(a)-mal\ is pronounced ja-MAL. It is of Arabic origin, and its meaning is "handsome". Popular among black or Muslim families in the US."

It's pronounced Ja-mall not ja-mel or ja-meal or any other diarrhea mouthed mispronunciation.

You can call me "J" or "Maal" for short if you can't get it right.

So why do I encounter so much confusion in the pronunciation and spelling of my given name?

Vexing, truly vexing. If I had a ghettofabulous name like laquafanita then we could have a dialogue but this is all monologue, son. I've got the mic.

My beef is with the people I correspond with via email at work. Within a given email my name is printed at least twice. Even with this being the case I still get the odd email reply addressed to "Jamal".

WTF?

There's not much more I can say other than that. If you see someone's name in their signature wouldn't you simply cut/paste their name or at least spell it correctly?

I'm done with this diatribe. If you ever have any questions about how many A's follow the M in my name just peep the picture above.

Day One

I hit that reset button.

After 5 years of carrying locks I decided to cut and shave. I carried a lot of emotion, stress, pain and good times in that hair. Times have changed and so have I.

I'm in a good place right now, the best place I've been in for a long time. I feel confident, strong centered and loved. I'm no longer the one-armed boxer I once was.

Right now, I couldn't ask for much more.

Tron-Ye

Let's face it...he's on top of the game. Whether you like him or not. KanYe is a great entertainer. Fuck the lyrics (or laugh while listening)--he's our guilty pleasure. Like ice cream after Midnight, I get KanYe cravings.

He'll be in San Jose on my birthday night, but I'll be in SF with my peeps having a better time.

Peep the futuristic glow in the dark gear on display at the Grammys:

My two fave pieces by Suheir

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