Tuesday, October 03, 2006

Prelude to a Ride...

I have several tales of my antics with one of my favorite 'hood characters, Tiny… many of which are only funny to only me and Tiny. You know, the type of stuff where you just had to be there for it to be hilarious. So I have decided to not post many tales, just the craziest one... or two… I am having trouble uploading pictures (ya'll know how much I like my pictures!) but I will reach back and dig up old uploaded pics and post as is...

Fuzzy lines… fade to black… harp music… digging back in the past.

I was going to go into my little story, but I um, guess I should give a little background on how I met Tiny, i.e., that tasty piece of eye candy.

I met Tiny a little over a year and a half ago, I believe, when my house was being built. I lived on the southside in College Park at the time. I worked a few minutes from LadyTee (she worked in Buckhead, I in Midtown) and since she was having car trouble, she was riding with me for the week, and I would drop her off at home in Fairburn. We were both ecstatic about riding together because we rarely see each other. A good hour together everyday always did us a world of good.

At the time, my house was currently being built in a downtown community, and it was a few miles from my job, along our usual route to the southside. We usually drove by just to gawk at the progress.

Well, my coworker, the Infamous Hen-Dog lived on the same street. We usually stopped by his house and, as the old folks use to say, “sit a spell.”

We sat around and looked at TV for a good half hour, LadyTee on the love seat, me in my favorite recliner. (Now you know it’s a shame when you have your favorite seat at someone’s house and would beat the brakes off ANYONE who is seated in it when you arrive… that’s how I am!)

Well, LadyTee was talking trash…

“Lee, we gotta be getting on up out of here! I got stuff to do!”

I was like cool, let’s go…

Hen-Dog, who was lounging on the sofa, said “Ya’ll hold up a minute, I want ya’ll to meet my homeboy.”

Okay, I was not interested in meeting some damn overrated self-absorbed Que-Dog. I looked over at LadyTee, who was kicking the hard scowl, with her purse slung over her shoulder, keys clenched tightly in her hand…

...ready to go.

“Alright Hen,”
I said, “but we gotta go.”

Hen-Dog called out to Tiny, who was upstairs. He said he would be down in a minute.

My ears perked up at the sound of Tiny’s deep baritone voice. A slight frown clouded my face. Hmm, that voice sounds kinda good, I thought to myself.

LadyTee even sat up straight.

Still, I didn’t care to meet some self-absorbed frat boy. Uggh!!

Well, he came downstairs. I remember catching a crook in my neck looking at him.

…Imagine Smoky and Ice-Cube sitting on the porch in the movie Friday yelling



Daaaaayuuummmmmnnnn!

Um, that is how LadyTee and I were. Hard HARD lean included.

A high-yella brother, at least 6’2”, buffed up, hair all wavy and snatched back into a long ponytail, a pair of nice light blue jeans on that show off his butt just right, a cotton shirt hanging on his upper body just right to show off some wonderfully delicious muscular definition...




As my grandmother would say… Goodness gracious alive…

I am the consummate tomboy, but um…he brought out the “Lady” in “LadyLee”.

LadyTee was over on the sofa all quiet, in the midst of a mental orgasm of some sort.

You know I had to touch this Adonis. I leaned forward and reached out my hand as an offer for a handshake. His nails were nice and clean. His hand was nice, not too soft, not too rough. It was just right.

I almost pulled a Ray Charles move. I wanted to grab his wrist, but I didn’t. LOL!

He sat down on the sofa next to Hen-Dog. I was still leaning forward, looking at him.




Yeah, I was bad about it.

LadyTee and I were not expecting to see all of THAT come stomping down the stairs, you see.

I cut my eyes over at LadyTee. She saw me glancing her way. She casually threw her purse down, and dropped her cell phone to the side. She leaned back, crossed her legs, and casually draped her arm across the back of the loveseat. For a second there, I thought she was gonna kick off her high heels.

This meant we were hanging out for awhile, you see.

LadyTee has a passion for high-yella men. I, LadyLee like my men chocolatety… Hershey bar dark or darker.

But eye candy is eye candy, right??

All I know, the Infamous Hen-Dog, who refuses to feed visitors (quote: “feeding negroes is like feeding stray cats”), delivered up a scrumptious and delectable piece of eye candy that day!

Well, Tiny was pecking away on a huge Sony laptop. I questioned him about his laptop, since I was in the market for one as soon as I closed on my house. I asked a few questions about other stuff, about himself, etc. LadyTee kind of just sat there and stared…


We weren’t paying much attention to Hen. As far as we were concerned, the Infamous Hen-Dog was a quiet picture on the wall, a lone lamp on the table, or a dry plant in desperate need of watering…

…A mere fuzz ball in the carpet.

In other words, he was ignored for the moment.

We were too busy looking at Tiny.

Hen-Dog had a fabulous idea (in his own mind, at least.). “Me and Tiny were about to head out to Shannon Mall to do some shopping. You and LadyTee heading that way… Why don’t you drop him off?”

My heart caught in my throat after that suggestion. I again glanced at LadyTee, and saw a smile tug at the corners of her lips and her eyes narrow.

She was plotting.

I relaxed back into the soft recliner… “Yo, um, Hen-Dog… He can roll with us for a fee, say, a hundred bucks.”

Hen laughed. He thought I was joking, but I was not. I’m not sure what Tiny was thinking. I am sure they were both wondering why I would say such a thing.

Well LadyTee and I left after an hour or so. Time we got in the car we talked about Tiny like a dog. We had caught a few cavities after all that candy!

LadyTee: Lawd have mercy, he sho was fine!
LadyLee: Girl, did you see that long pretty ponytail? Man, I bet it cost a fortune to keep that negro’s hair up!

LadyTee: He is fine as hell, though! Damn!
LadyLee: Did you see that big ass laptop he had? Dang! I bet that cost a fortune! I bet some woman bought it for him!

LadyTee: LadyTee shivers as if hit with a cold blast of air. “That boy there! Whoo, gurl! He was fine and sexy.”
LadyLee: Shoot did you see him though? A sista would go broke trying to keep that dude all pretty like that! Do you realize that you have to be a Ninja or a damn jedi knight to keep scandolous broads away from him?

LadyLee: There was NO WAY he was getting in my car. I wasn’t taking him anywhere, because I know you, LadyTee.
LadyTee: Yes Lawd! Because he wasn’t gonna make it to the mall. We were going straight to my house.
LadyLee: Yeah I know… and I wasn’t going to be held responsible for that! Hen-Dog would kill me!


LadyTee just thought he was fine. I was more concerned about the scenario of having to watch a negro closely or having to come up out of the pocket with much bread to keep dude lovely...

(Deeper question: Why on earth was I even making an assumption about him???)

Humph.

Anyway, I spoke with Hen-Dog the next day and promptly let him know that I was sorry for not taking his homeboy to the mall, and the only way I could properly deliver Tiny to the mall was for some cash. That way, I could have a reason to hold off LadyTee and her plotting ways.

I told him, LadyTee was going to get that!

He thought that was funny. But I know my girl and her passion for red men!

I told Hen-Dog that that dude was a bit too pretty. A sista would go broke trying to keep his hair fixed, trying to keep that ponytail just right, and trying to keep him dressed right. Depression and fatigue would set in after trying to keep up with him. A sista would have battle scars after scrapping with women, trying to keep them away from him.

That ish right there is a BIG turnoff. I can’t stand a pretty ass man.

Plus, I like my men Hershey bar dark or darker. This disqualifies pretty Tiny from my stable of men! LOL!!!

I spoke to Hen-Dog’s neighbor, a lesbian name Kim, sometime later. She was sitting on her front porch, in shorts, tanktop, head scarf and house shoes, enjoying the summer breeze, sipping cold Budweiser beer from a wine glass, as was her usual habit. I sat in a chair next to her.

“LadyLee did you meet PonyTail?”
“Who?”
“PonyTail, you know, Hen-Dog’s roommate?”
“You mean that dude Tiny?”
“Yeah, I call him Ponytail.”
She delecately raises her wine glass to her lips and takes a sip of her beer. She has a look in her eye that, um, I didn’t think a lesbian would have when talking about a man.
I shrugged. “Yeah, I met him. He’s cool.”
Cool? He cool? Hell, that n**** is fine as hell!” she screamed. She shivered hard, so hard that she almost dropped her wineglass.

*crickets*

*LadyLee peers curiously at Kim, gets up slowly from the chair on her porch, and walks away… scratching head in complete and utter confusion.*

I spoke with Hen-Dog for several days about this. I was still just perplexed at the amount of money and fortitude a sista would need to take care of such a pretty negro.

“Hen-Dog, I bet I can tell you what kind of car he drives.”

“What kind?” he asked.

“A candy apple red Mustang.”

“He sure does. How you know?”

Because you can look at his pretty ass and tell.”

Tiny’s car was in Arizona at the time. He went and retrieved it and drove it back across country.

Very nice car.

Very LOUD car.

A few months later, I rode in his car... we decided to go do our grocery shopping together. You know, one of them kill two birds with one stone type of things.

Two words…

NEVER. AGAIN.

Stay tuned for "The Blood Ride".

Friday, September 29, 2006

Days of Candy

It's fall...

It's cooling off... Cool breezes, mild temperatures...

Thank goodness, because I have grown quite tired of the heat.

And these are days of candy...

Eye Candy, that is...



Thought I would give you a little eye candy...



A little candy... for... your... EYE...



Lawdhavmercyjesusmarthamaryandthem...

That brotha in the pics is "Tiny"... another character in my neighborhood.

He is not a
Leaf Raker... And he sho ain't Bin Laden.

Stay tuned for....

Character Round-up Part III:

TINY... "The Blood Ride"

Have a nice weekend:)

Thursday, September 28, 2006

Boy in the Military...

So...

My brother has switched from Army Reserves to Active Duty...

This occurred some three weeks ago, and I decided to wait to blog about it, just to give myself a little distance from his decision. Also, i didn't want to short out my laptop with my crocodile tears! LOL!

And I have to admit, I don't care for that military look. I remember standing next to him last November after his graduation from basic training, looking up at him, staring at him afterwards, not understanding the point of all that damn camoflauge makeup. I remember asking him if I could touch his made-up face, if I could touch his gun... I remember not liking that look, his guns, his flak jacket, his night scope... but I do remember one thing: being incredibly proud of him for completing his basic training.

So one day, a couple of months ago, I am sitting downstairs in my favorite chair, feet up on the ottoman, pecking away on my laptop. He runs downstairs, looking all nervous. I peer at him over my glasses, wondering what he wanted from me. It reminded me of when he was a little boy and he would dance around me as I was sitting at the computer, nervously typing out my dissertation...


"What do you want?"

"We gotta talk."

Lord please don't let this boy tell me that he done went and got some lil' girl pregnant, I thought quietly to myself as I stared hard at him.

"What's wrong?" I asked. I was ready to thoroughly crack him over the head with my laptop.

"I'm going active."

"What?"

"I said, I am going active."

He seem to make sure he wasn't too close to me. It was if he thought that if he had to break out and run from an ass-kicking, he would have at least some type of a head start.

I just looked at him. I didn't whine and cry like I did when he first said that he was going into the army the year before. I just plainly stated the following:

"You do whatever the hell you want to do. Screw it. I am tired. I have done what I could to help you and Kentucky [our sister], and shit, man, I am tired, and I am choosing to emotionally distance myself from this whole mess. All I know is that you better not ever say that I didn't EVER do anything to try and help you. You better not blame this decision on no one else but you. I am tired. I am through."

I went back to typing whatever I was working on. I was a bit mad because I had been pretty much been labeled a villian of late. I was through with it all.


He was taken aback by my answer, standing there rubbing his hands on his shorts.

"Lee, you have done a lot to help us. A whole lot. I have been thinking about this, and it is something I want to do."

"Whatever man. I am through. I am sick of this. Do whatever you want to do. I am through. Leave me alone. I am busy."


We didn't talk much for a few days. I was brooding a bit. It didn't help that I had had a funky run-in with our sister Kentucky about a very touchy issue, and I was in the mood where I pretty much wanted everybody out of my damn house anyway. Let's just say he picked the wrong time to spring such news on me.

He tried to talk with me about it some more. I maintained that I was emotionally disconnecting myself from it all. He is grown. He could do whatever he wanted. I was gonna shift from always thinking of them and I was going to start thinking about me. End of discussion.

I was just mad as hell. I did not want my lil' brother running around Iraq, getting shot at, dealing with suicide bombers, steppind on IEDs, his mind going bad from seeing all kinds of unnecessary ish...

I just thought his life was worth more than that.


I wasn't as distraught as I was when he first went in. I blogged about that awhile back. Seeing him get on that bus to ship out to his basic training... damn, that has to be one of the top ten most terrible feelings I've ever felt in my life.

It took me a very long time to accept the fact that I was not a failure. I thought I had failed him, to the point where he had to go join the military. If only I could have done the right things, made more money... he wouldn't have to make such a decision.

I kind of eventually knew and accepted that it wasn't about me...

It was more of about him doing some things for himself, making his own decisions...

It ain't about him doing what I want him to do, but more about him doing what he has made a decision to do for himself.

I am not sure if that sounds silly or not. But this is the only way that I could mentally deal with him going into the army. This is the only way that I could bring myself to support his decision.

I told him, under no circumstances should he call home whining about he is tired of the army. I told him, if they send his ass to Iraq, he better fight for his life, shoot first, and ask questions later. He needs to do whatever he needs to do to stay alive. Do what he gotta do, and get his butt back over here to the US where he belongs.

It turns out that he had a long talk with my neighbor Stan about it, who eventually convinced me that Kari had been thinking on it for awhile... He needed to make his own decisions, and get away from friends who weren't about anything, etc. I felt a little better after that talk. It helped me get to a point to where I would try to at least be a bit more supportive.... A bit more gleeful about his decision...

He needed to lose 5 pounds to make weight for processing. I did all I could to be supportive of him, like go with him to the track, and follow behind him in my car while he ran from the track all the way home... I made sure to spend as much time as possible with him. The two weeks before he left were a lot of fun...

Usually when he gets ready to go on some military training, I try to take pictures of him. I took pictures this time and then walked away back into the house. He called after me, but I didn't turn back around, just headed up the front steps of my porch and into the house.

I did not want him to see me cry. I must've cried for a good hour.

It hurts whenever he leaves.

We have been in contact, and I can freely pick up my phone and call him on his cell phone. He is stationed in Fort Benning, only a hundred miles away, so he comes home on the weekends. Best of all, he has been assigned to a nondeployable garrison unit. So I am very happy about that.

My biggest thing right now is to do my best to support him. I don't have to agree with him, but I think we can disagree in an agreeable manner...

...And still have love for one another.

So Kari? a.k.a., "Milk and Cookies"...





I hope your army experience is all that you hope for it to be...



Remember that I love you... you are like my child...



Be safe, and take care of yourself out there:)

Love, your big sista

Lisa,

a.k.a., That Oldgirl LadyLee...

Tuesday, September 26, 2006

Boy on the Sofa

I've got a problem with this...


I've got such a problem with this...








I've got a big freakin' problem with this...
>

I've had a probelm with my brother lounging hard on my microsuede off-white sofa. Heck, I am still making payments on the darn thing.















The bit of the diva in me was horrified by the mix-matched military socks and the ashy knees...


Even though the socks were clean (supposedly) I knew he'd been running around doing military drills at one time or another in those socks, and they were on his feet now, which were casually slung over the top of my sofa...

My beloved cat Oscar-Tyrone has seen the wrath of my madness many a time in nine years. So he anticipated a confrontation and decided to get as far as possible from any possible commotion that may develop from my anger... He chooses to watch us from one of his favorite spots (the beam over the living room)



I decided not to tackle my brother and throw him off of the sofa. This worked when he was three or four. When he was that young, I could snatch him up with one hand, spank his butt, and watch him cry. He was a big dude now. Couldn't snatch him up like that anymore.

Instead, I talked to him quite a bit...

"Kari, man, my sofa, man... be careful on my sofa, man."

His constant response...

"Awww Shawty, you'll be alright!"




*Lee kicking the hardcore Ms. Sophia scowl and balling up fist*

"Well at least cover it with a sheet," I suggested.

That worked... for awhile. After a few days, the sheet was on the other side of the sofa somewhere. Oscar-Tyrone saw that the boy didn't get in much trouble for lounging on my couch... So he (Oscar) decided to join him...

Now, the two of them would sit there and mean-mug me every day...




Humph...

But right now, at this very moment, I'd give anything to have the ashy-kneed lil' boy lounging on my couch...

Because 3 weeks ago, the day after the Labor day he switched from Army Reserve to active duty, and he lives on base now...



I must admit I miss that ashy-kneed boy... My sofa looks strange without him there...

I miss him, so, so much...

To be continued...

Friday, September 22, 2006

Viv's Old School Mixtapes...

Something quite funny happened last month...

So I make some CDs for one of my bookclub sistas to take on a trip to Hawaii ("The Kat's Mixtapes"). I gave them to her at our journal writing club meeting. She was a bit excited. My book club president Shunda looked through the CDs and decided that she wanted some too. Well, I made her some.

Then, an email went out to the journal writing group... something to the effect of...

"[Ladylee] makes the bomb CDs!! I think she is taking orders!!"

*Crickets*

Man, me and a coworker got a GOOD howl out of that one! Hilarious. I'd been put on BLAST!

Now, I've only been in my book club for a year. These ladies have been hanging HARD for years. I am the Newbie of the bunch, and it don't help that I am uncharacteristically quiet (Imagine that... a "quiet" LadyLee! LOL!). Heck, these ladies drop so much doggone knowledge that I just need to be quiet and soak it all up...

Can't talk much, you see. I might just miss something important!!

But I love the fact that they do treat my introverted hermit ass like one of the crew!

So I wasn't particularly concerned about that email, and I got a good laugh out of it. (In fact, it made my week!). If there is one thing I know about human nature, it is that people are a bit apprehensive about approaching someone that they don't really know about something like this email, meaning that out of the 15-20 sistas in the journal writing group, maybe 5 will ask for a CD or two.

And that is exactly what happened... and I am all too happy to accomodate the requests:)

One of those ladies is Viv. She happens to live less than a mile from me, and we share a ride to meetings from time to time. I rode with her to the last meeting in her plush SUV and she was playing some ol' John Legend and some other neo-soul "touchy-feely" ish... Man oh man, I was sleepy as hell riding in the nice ride with the soft sounds all around me.

*LadyLee busy looking around for a pillow and blanket so she can curl up and go to sleep*

*LadyLee pondering HARD on the issha of going somewhere and test driving an SUV real real soon*

I was so relaxed and at ease after getting out of her truck... made me want to go somewhere and buy some ol' slow soothing neo-soul AND a phat truck.

So when I got an email from her, in response to the email that put me on blast, saying...

"So [Ladylee], you don't have the old/first EPMD?, I like the classic rap stuff too:)"




I was like... "Hunh????"

After all that neo-soul!!?? How did we jump from neo-soul to classic rap??? WOW...

Hellll yeah, I got some classic rap!! I even had a little of that old EPMD too!!!

Now Viv... that's my type of gal right there!!

So Viv, you already have 2 of these CDs... The last one? I will give to you at the book club meeting...

Enjoy:)


VIV’S OLD SCHOOL MIX I

Jam Master Jay - Run DMC
You’re a customer - EPMD
Fat Boys - Fat Boys
Jam On It – Newcleus
Strictly Business – EPMD
Five Minutes of Funk – Whodini
Rock the Bells – LL Cool J
Rockit – Herbie Hancock
Do the Pee Wee Herman
Beat Box – Art of Noise
AJ Scratch –Kurtis Blow
Hard Times – Run DMC
I’ll Take your Man – Salt N Peppa
Peter Piper – Run DMC
He’s BizMarkie – Biz Markie




VIV’S OLD SCHOOL MIX II

The Show-Dougie Fresh
Roxanne Roxanne- UTFO
Roxanne’s Revenge-Roxanne Shante
Can You Feel it-Fat boys
Push the Button (Computer Age)-Newcleus
Paper Thin-MC Lyte
It’s Like That- Run DMC
Hardcore Hip Hop – Mantronix
I Need a Beat- LL Cool J
The overweight Lover-Heavy D and the boys
Planet Rock-Afrikan Bambatta and the Soul Sonic Force
Leader of the Pack – UTFO
Apache- Sugar Hill Gang
Make the music with your mouth- Biz Markie.



VIV’S OLD SCHOOL MIX III

Rappers Delight- Sugarhill Gang
It’s my thing-EPMD
King Of Rock- Run DMC

Five Minutes of Funk-Whodini
Paid in Full (remix)- Eric B and Rakim
Funky Beat-Whodini
The Message-Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five
Eric B for President- Rakim and Eric B
Freaks Come Out at Night
They Reminisce over You-Pete Rock and C.L. Smooth
One Love-Whodini
Rock Box- Run DMC
Big Mouth-Whodini
The Request Line- Rockmaster Scott