The Evolution of Man - Level Up!

This song opened me up to new perspectives of what music, love, and poetry could be.

Binary Star - Evolution of Man (1999)

Opening Lyrics:

[One Be Lo]

It's like... Beyond physical attraction, 

Your explosive personality blows my mentality.

Actually, my emotions on a rampage. 

We ain't the same age, but we in the same book, on the same page.

Your conversation calls for meditation.

Never amateur. Check the calendar, let's make a reservation.

Communication is the bridge.

At times, I wonder what you thinkin'.

The truth will set you free like Abe Lincoln.

[Brenda J]

Free, I'm totally emancipated.

Proclaiming is due to the love together we've created.

Our thoughts no longer separated,

Past barriers and roadblocks, 

You've opened my heart, no need to pick the lock.

[One Be Lo]

The key to my heart should be the sole controller,

Life is full of ups and downs like a roller coaster.

I'm hip to your vibe like Motorola...

...it goes on, and it don't stop.

I. This Song Bang Hard!

A hip hop looove track. Right up there with "The Light" by Common and "Beautiful" by Mos Def, Talib Kweli, and Mary J. Blige. It's the softer side of hip hop, and without the major label.

So I posted a few weeks ago about how Binary Star opened me up to underground hip hop with the song "Honest Expression," but THIS song, "Evolution of Man" opened me up to new levels of poetry and love. The girl's lyrics are really poetic too.

What struck me most when I got introduced to this in 2005 WASN'T just the subject matter and clever rhymes, even though I love the subject matter and it's clever as shit, delivered over that smooth beat.... so lovely, enjoy the song!!! What struck me about "Evolution of Man" was that it sounded genuine, and authentic, as if he wrote it specifically for his loved one, and not to sell a million records to a mass audience. Just look at the first line! There must be someone special that this song was inspired by, and THAT's what stuck with me... inspired rhyming!


Words packed with emotion are much more powerful compared to words that lack feeling and passion.

II. Songs don't change your life, YOU DO!

From that point on, I did something that changed my life: I adopted the habit of writing whenever I got inspired. Started when I was bored in detention. Continued when I found poems to be a fun way to surprise a girl I liked. Didn't always charm them, but sometimes it did. My early rhymes were pretty terrible, but they got better over time. Writing has become a habit that exercises my creativity muscle and keeps me producing. I'm doing it right now. I can't ever stop, and I have no reason to because it's fun and enriches my life.

Wise words/Free plug for a respected bboy's blog: 1nspiration is Free.
Inspiration could come from a girl (as it often has), from a story/picture/song/video, from dancing, or from a specific event or experience. From family. From clouds. From the weather. From Morgan Freeman's voice. From natural patterns I notice. From social/economic/political issues that need to be addressed. Just like hip hop, it's FREE. The point is, after falling in love with this song, something was triggered in my poor head to find inspiration through MANY sources, and convert that inspiration into inspired words.

I'm inspired by people who write better than me, those who are more accomplished than me, and that's what keeps me hungry to improve my writing, making new rhymes, and blogging. I want to get better... I'm not ready to plateau!

I'm inspired by great people, accomplished people, genuinely happy people, passionate people, responsible people, disciplined people, entrepreneurs, people with skills and abilities...

III. In Conclusion:

I know I talk about myself a lot, BUT... It's not about me, it's about everyone around me, friends, family, and students. Future children and grandchildren. I wish for their lives to be better. That's what this blog is for. I wish for my energy to be contagious. Some people who don't know me well talk ill on me/my blog/my videos, but I just wish the best for them. I don't wish to spend my time spewing hate... I'd rather spend my time doing great. Haha. Rhymetime!


Back to the topic, Evolution of Man.

Here's what I learned from writing/dancing/living, and here's what matters most: When your mind changes, your life changes. That's why teachers, mentors, friends, and family are important! They affect your mind, and can help you grow. When you learn new skills, you evolve. Life IS like an RPG game, in the sense that you explore the world collect new experiences; when you fight through battles, you gain "experience points," and when you get better, you level up! And LIFE IS AWESOME!

There's no limit to what humans are capable of learning and doing. Evolve yourself!

to infinity

Like the late great business philosopher Jim Rohn said:

"Don't wish for things to get easier, wish for yourself to get BETTER.

Don't wish for less problems, wish for more skills!"

Nice philosophy! It works in reverse too: When you get better, things that were once difficult become easier for you. Think... walking, dancing, driving a car, etc.. It's not about magic, it's about good habits!

So in high school when I focused on evolving MYSELF, and getting better at things that I wasn't good at, my life got better! My dancing, my rhyming, my relationships all get better, when I improve myself.

More recently, I had this revelation (self-talk): "Stop trying to prove yourself to people. Stop trying to prove that you're knowledgeable about hip hop culture, and that you can dance, and rhyme, etc.... Focus instead on IMproving yourself; do what you're meant to do on this earth, and let others think what they will anyway."


Live with purpose, and on purpose. Always striving for the next level. It's the evolution of man.

~~~

Haha, just noticed another pattern as I was writing this:

Bored during lunch/after-school => started breaking.
Bored during detention => started writing/rhyming.
Bored during non-work hours => started blogging/business planning.


Last words:

Consistency is the Key.
That's what I learned from L-I-F-E.
And my friends agree.
Consistency is the Key.

5.5 Tips to get from Friendship to Relationship (Pt. II)

Couple disclaimers before we get it in:

-This advice is for going from Friendzone to Relationship. Nothing sleazy. Hooking up with a girl you don't know is DIFFERENT, and not necessarily sleazy, but requires a different approach. Maybe a different blogpost.

-This is what works for me. Some people have different philosophies that work for them. You can listen to them, or listen to me, but in the end, make your own decisions. These are tips, not rules.

-I'm not Romeo Casanova, but I've been in the Friend Zone. And once I got out of it, I've never been back in a situation where I liked a girl, and she didn't know, but would rather just be friends.

That's a shitty situation.

But, there is a way out!

So here's

5.5 Tips to get from Friendship to Relationship

1) Start as FRIENDS - The positive news is, being friends is GOOD! If you're friends with someone, be HAPPY, it means she doesn't hate you. Friendships that turn into relationships are healthy because the foundation is already built.

If you're NOT friends with any girls, and you don't put yourself in situations to see girls, then that's a different problem altogether! But if you're open, friendly, and don't smell terrible, then there's someone out there for you, and you'll both be happy together. 

Establishing a common ground, a mutual connection, and even chemistry as FRIENDS is the basis of a strong relationship. Many strong relationships begin as friendships, and grow from there. Not all people want a strong relationship, but something that starts too quickly can end just as fast. 

So be friends first. You don't have to wait 5 years, but maybe a few weeks/months.

Stay patient. Persistency pays, and time reveals character. 

The tricky part about starting as friends is navigating THROUGH the Friend Zone, and not getting stuck there. That's why you need Tip 2.

2) Be clear about what you want - Is it a relationship? is it a study buddy? dance partner? partner in crime? a fellow superhero? looking for fun? keeping options open? all of the above?

Partnerships are about building trust, but you gotta have a CLEAR INTENTION that you're not just looking for new friends. You ARE looking for new friends, but if you want more than that, then you have look for more than that. If you search you will find. Not "if you keep quietly to yourself it will drop on your lap." That won't happen. It's better to be looking for a lot of things, than to not be looking for much, or even worse, to wander aimlessly. This often makes the difference between staying in the friend zone, or opening up more possibilities, so observe the power of clear intentions.

3) Do something mutually beneficial - Make both your lives better. A relationship should serve you, not hurt you. Personally, I study, dance, stretch, eat, and have fun - these are all things that can be done with another person. 

People mess up here a lot, but I think it's very important. You should still have fun doing mundane things. If the chemistry is right, then it won't be BORING because you'll get to know each other. The intuitive idea for many people is to look for something fun to do, so the default choices are... movies, clubbing, partying, etc, and these are cool to do too, especially if you're the kind of person that does that, but if the chemistry isn't there, the reaction still fizzles. 

It doesn't have to be unique, but if it's unique, like doing something she's involved in (like a performance, hint), it's even cooler. Even just supporting/encouraging each other is major.

As a friend, think about what's in it for HER?

Having a boyfriend/girlfriend can be very rewarding.

She might not consciously think it, but she does think "Will my life be better with this guy or not?"

If the time you spend together is mutually beneficial, then that answer should be a no-brainer. 

Seeeee?

4) Support YOURSELF! My favorite pick-up line is: Can I be your bra? Cuz I'd like to support you!

Cheesy? Yes. Original? Also yes, I made it myself. But how can you support a girlfriend if you can't support yourself? So it's not about money, but having money helps. Having a job helps. Getting good grades helps. Having your shit together helps. Having some promise and showing some future helps.

Have a future!

No woman wants to be with some guy who has no future. 

And if she did, I'd be worried for her!

Here's the phenomenon that blows my mind, and I think it's a result of the Women's Rights/Independent Women's Movement: Girlfriends who support their bum boyfriends. Is it an empowering feeling for her? Idunno, but either he's got potential for something that's not there yet, or she can do better than that but chooses not to. Either way, bumming bums. No scrubs LOL.

5) DEVELOP yourself - Don't just support yourself financially, take a holistic approach and develop yourself into a better overall person. Probably the most important tip I could give a young fella. This is a good time to fix little holes in your character. Everyone's got them, so it's okay.

What holes? Something needs fixing? Yeah, are you frequently late or on time? Do you smell bad? Is your car dirty? Room dirty? Do you waste time doing stupid shit? Do you still play games? Do you have a good attitude or do you complain, whine, and talk smack? Do you rarely follow through with what you say? 

The wrong answers may explain why you can't get a girlfriend.

Knowledge and Skills come in handy too. Can you read a map? Can you fix a car? Can you dance? There are a lot of people who say they dance now, so can you dance WELL? Do you know your history? Along with these skills, do you know how to tell when a girl is interested in you?

~~~

On that note, here's my final tip, in closing. 

If a girl chooses to spend time with you, more than once, then MAYBE she likes you. It's no guarantee, but it's important to read the signs; I've definitely made the mistake of not knowing when a girl was interested in me back in high school, and I was TOTALLY into her, but put MYSELF in the friend zone, just cuz I didn't have the confidence. That's super lame. I'm not doing that anymore.

"Nice guys can get girlfriends; passive guys can't."

-My girlfriend

No one taught me about girls, so I just learned from my own mistakes.

If she genuinely inspires you to do or write something, let her know. That's part of the magic.

I've been in the Friend Zone myself. I got out of it myself.

It's kinda a shitty place to be if you can't figure out how to get out of it.

Also, if it's NOT right, and a relationship realistically wouldn't work out, be open to being friends and finding someone else. If she's not feeling you, chances are, she's not really the love of your life.

GOOD LUCK!

Advice on Navigating the Friend Zone

Here's a really good song that pretty much nobody knows.

Take a few minutes to stream it.

It's a FRIEND ZONE song!

Jurassic 5 - Thin Line (ft. Nelly Furtado)

Opening by Chali 2na: 

This is a lesson in friendship.

The depths of a kinship.

What women and men begin with,

And then slip.

My pen drips

As I scribble my thoughts on thin strips

Of emotion...

And the hook from Nelly Furtado:

We been friends for a long time, a very close friend of mine,

Love you like you was mine, but respect the thin line.

I love you like you was mine, think about you all the time,

A very close friend of mine, but respect the thin line.

[You can get the rest of the lyrics here]

Sounds like she's not gonna let him out of the Friend Zone, but then.....

Nelly's verse:

I can't do this anymore,

See my heart just falls out when you walk in the door.

Friendship turned into lust, and this only tip

That I can't comprehend even if I knew it.

Can't do justice to these things that I'm feeling,

You got someone else don't wanna be caught stealing,

Hell if she knew she would never leave us alone in the roo-oo-oom.

Then the song wraps up:

This was a listen in friendship.

I stress in this sentence:

Should men and women be friends first, and then slip?

My pen drips as I scribble my thoughts on thin strips 

Of devotion...

Opposites attract...

And best friends make a perfect match,

If you only knew that...

~~~~

So in CONCLUSION, not all Friend Zone stories end like that, but some do.

Also, Nelly Furtado was super illy before she had that pop phase. 

Still it's just a song.

The reality is that situations like this happen, where both sides are friends, 

but one is romantically attracted, and the other is not...

And she seems to frequently run into boy problems.

Here's the tip from Nelly's verse - she can't even comprehend! 

Girls have no idea what they want sometimes.

So take charge. Be a man, lead the way. 

Grow some cajones...

Also from the song, the guy says "Yo watchu doin after this?"

Not a bad question! It expresses interest without crossing the line.

I'm gonna come from a guy's perspective, having had a thing for a girl who gets attracted to jerks and losers who mistreat her, because that's the perspective I know.

So for guys in the Friend Zone:

Be understanding that girls aren't perfect either, and many just don't know their real worth, so that's why some end up with jerkhead guys... or settle with someone that they know is not right for them. Also, girls like to have fun too, so just being "nice" isn't enough. Gotta be MORE than just nice.

You have to BE more... so you can HAVE more. In order to BE more, you just have to DO more. And in order to DO more, you just have to KNOW more.

Most guys in the Friend Zone just don't know what they're missing, or what they can do differently...

I will go into more depth on that in my next post.

Stay tuned :)

WHOA - Speaker Scam in OC/SD/LA/Worldwide areas!

This post is about another job that I got, found from a Craigslist hiring ad. Nothing glamorous, and being on Craigslist, it was a little suspicious to begin with.

In many ways, this is hilarious to me. Here's my report:

PART I. WOW - The Woes of Work

Came in for an interview Monday morning, and at the end of the interview, they ask when can I start. Heck yah. That's usually how my interviews turn out, so I thought nothing strange of it.

I got started right away, and I actually liked it at first because I thought the guys were pretty cool. In fact, I got along with a few of them. Good guys.

Most of them smoke non-stop though, all day. And I found a few of them to be particularly racist and chauvinistic. None of them can dance or rap either. They look poser-as-shit when they try to sing that "Fucking Problem" song (kinda like THIS HILARIOUS)... I almost punched one of the racist guys cuz there were 2 other Asian dudes there, and the guy kept saying racist ass shit to the other guys. Fuq that shit really, I don't put up with people getting disrespected like that. Those guys shouldn't either, I can't believe they'd just take it like that.

Anyway, I spent the first half of the morning doing some moving labor. With the help of a few day laborers from Home Depot, we unloaded 400 speaker boxes from out of an 18-wheeler, into the warehouse. Then from the warehouse into about 10 rented SUVs. Got a good workout. They can fit about 10 sets of speakers/projectors in the back of each SUV.

Here's the mission statement:

We're selling speakers from out the back of cars

PART II. SCAM I AM

I spent the rest of the day getting trained by the manager, and watching him sell speakers to strangers. He was a pretty cool guy too, but turned out to be the most racist out of all of them. He was very anti-Black. Grew up in Detroit, so I'm guessing he got bullied or some shit as a kid. Here's what I noted about the job from my day with him:

PCH Theatre

—Pushy, low-integrity sales

—Racism

—Shit talking on people who say no (calling them pussies, queers, losers, bitches, etc)

—Excessive tailgating...

—I could probably get good at these sales, but I can use my knowledge and communication abilities for something better than scamming people for cheap speakers. They upsell to get the highest price possible, saying the retail price/MSRP is $3,000, so that unsuspecting buyers think they're getting a bargain when they fork over $150-500.

The terrible thing is, they're targeting people all over the SoCal area! 

My bboy homie bought the speakers! And that's fucked up! Cuz he broke!

They said they "slammed" him. That's how they refer to the people they sell to.

If you don't respect your own customers, that's a big no-no for business.

Important to know:

•If you are from the OC, LA, or SD counties, be aware of these guys! They are also all over the US, Canada, and Australia.

•They try to catch people on the streets and in parking lots near banks, shopping plazas, gas stations and schools.

•They drive around in clean rented SUVs, usually with out-of-state plates.

•They operate primarily in teams of 2 people, but sometimes 1 or 3.

•Girls are hustling these speakers too.

•They only need to sell the speakers for $100 (which they give back to their boss), and anything higher than $100 is theirs to keep, so they will try to get the highest price possible from people.

Here's the same scam happening in Australia, have fun with the accents:

PART III. MY ASS...ESSMENT

They buy cheaply made speakers in bulk, packaged and sent directly from the manufacturer, then sell the speakers on the streets for as much as they can, claiming the sound systems are high-end European speakers engineered in Denmark, retailing around $3,000. We were instructed to peel off the Made In China stickers.

Wiki actually does a great job explaining the scam:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_van_speaker_scam

Some of these guys are making a LOT of money; but a lot of them are arrogant, alpha-male types, the kind that likes to dominate conversations with strangers and assert superiority LOL.

They asked me if I could speak Vietnamese, and when I said I could, they said: "ohhh, you could get people in Westminster!" FAUCK THAT. Like I'd scam my own people. Hell no! That's despicable.

What a sad life. Living phony and lying all day. No wonder they smoke so much. So much conflict.

The truth is, I feel really terrible for even participating a bit in one of the sales. They have a "good guy, bad guy" routine.

I would never have a business like that, because a REAL BUSINESS that operates ETHICALLY and EFFECTIVELY has the potential to do so much good in the world.