ATM's Blog

Wantin’ it bad….

atmtkp — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 04:45:25 +0000

has made me got it bad.

I shouldn’t let my imagination thrill me though because it’s back to reality.

For Colored Girls

atmtkp — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 11:23:58 +0000

So Tyler Perry opened up shop and people are upset that he did? I’m not one of those people. Maybe it’s because I’m not as enamored with TP are – in negative and positive ways. I realize that when I go see a TP movie I’m going to be entertained, and not entertained with thought. Not to slight him in any way but he doesn’t create thought-provoking movies. They are for laughs with a nice little moral at the end and a happy ending. A fairy tale? Yes. I don’t think that he is committing any act of Tom Foolery or anything of the like. Him dressing up as a gun-toting grandma does not bother me. Nor did it bother me when Martin Lawrence did it, Eddie Murphy, Wesley Snipes, etc. The dressing in drag doesn’t bother me because at the end of the day I know that it is for entertainment and it’s not setting us(black people) back anymore than we already are. But back on topic

I look forward to this movie not because it has anything to do with TP but because the play was so well written and based on very short history of adaptations he did a good job. i.e. Precious and people are still talking about that movie. Also that movie was so good that it made people including myself buy the book and I was very pleased with how true the movie was to it. Yes he had some help from Oprah on the executive producing and he didn’t direct it but still I have faith in For Colored Girls and why? Well because people thought it was good enough to be moved from a typical TP February release to an Oscar season release. Also the cast is impeccable and because they are such seasoned veterans I don’t think that they would let the movie stray. I’ll also be pleased the awareness that it will bring and the play to the forefront and have more people read it and possibly revisit the play production and it can be seen by folks that were too young the first go round to see it or just haven’t been lucky enough to have it in an area that it visited.

A bit of a tangent here but for the directors and bloggers that have an issue with TP being a man directing the play or just him in general directing the play I tell them to suck it. Any beefs you have with TP fine don’t go and see the movie and stick to loving the play however don’t get angry that he directed it. The play has been out for 35 years and won its broadway accolades 33 years ago so in that time there has been 33-35 years for someone to take on this task of creating a film version of the play. Spike Lee, Oprah, Denzel, Chris Rock, Whoopi, Angela Basset, Laurence Fishburne,Robert Townsend etc all had the means and connects to make this come alive. Not throwing salt on them for NOT doing it but don’t be mad that TP did it when everybody had just as much opportunity and money before he arrived on the scene to do it. Also, if his testosterone is the issue in recent times more and more women have been directing and developing projects and any of the listed names could have helped them out but on the same hand TP could have done the same but he didn’t but I have faith that the women in the project will do it justice.

I admire that he built his own empire and is using his own funds for his projects. People need to think and realize that Black Hollywood although it is growing is still very small and there are limited resources and fundings for actors and projects so instead of tearing down somebody who found a niche market and has been ridiculously successful, think deeper about why he became successful. There are two few black directors/casts so when a “black” movie comes out people feel that they should support it but also his movies are Christian based, so one shouldn’t have to question why he gets support from Black Christians because we know how that group works. Then the persons who feel that because we have so few black directors/casts that all of our movies need to be Oscar-worthy need to look at reality. There are more crappy movies produced and starring white people each year than their oscar buzz movies. I actually think that black people are doing well with our movies because we are recycling the same good actors, producing more movies with positive messages, adapting from novels and creating exposure, and more actors are stepping behind the camera and creating a darker directors seat than ever before which is creating more quality and that is always better than quantity. Yes for every good movie we have there are 6 Soul Planes but still we are making progress. Also just because we started making better qualities it doesn’t mean that white people are going to see us in a better light or have a better understanding of black people as a whole and I firmly believe this based on the recent Oscars going to black people who played the antagonist. But if somebody feels that they need more variety in movies–either pick up a camera,start writing a screenplay or hit the film festival circuit to find something of “substance” instead of waiting for the mainstream production companies to deliver something to you.

Night Catches Us

atmtkp — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 10:03:11 +0000

In 1976, after years of mysterious absence, Marcus returns to the Philadelphia neighborhood where he came of age in the midst of the Black Power movement. While his arrival raises suspicion among his family and former neighbors, he finds acceptance from his old friend Patricia and her daughter. However, Marcus quickly finds himself at odds with the organization he once embraced, whose members suspect he orchestrated the slaying of their former comrade-in-arms. In a startling sequence of events, Marcus must protect a secret that could shatter everyone’s beliefs as he rediscovers his forbidden passion for Patricia.

The touching drama hits theaters on December 3, 2010.

Kerry Washington? Black Panthers? Score by the Roots? O Yea I’m there! Even though it’s a work of fiction remember that there is truth to every story and I bet that out of the Panthers of the 60′s this was one of their stories.

Some Houston History

atmtkp — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 09:41:55 +0000

Carl Hampton

Carl Lives

On July 26, 1970, Carl Bernard Hampton, one of Black America’s most articulate, courageous and heroic, young leaders was ruthlessly slain by the Houston Police Department’s Central Intelligence Division (CID). At the age of 21, Carl was a tireless organizer who worked day and night to establish People’s Party II, a Black revolutionary group modeled after the Black Panther Party (BPP)….

“I try to write a song as sweet as the Psalms”

atmtkp — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 09:28:43 +0000

This is a good song with a good cover. Didn’t drift to far but gave it a 21st century flair. Although I’m on the fence about the Melanie Fiona choice. I can’t decide if I don’t like her or if they overplayed her wackest single here in Houston, but nonetheless she did a good job on this song. I really like what John Legend and The Roots did with this whole album concept.

Follow the Passion

atmtkp — Fri, 01 Oct 2010 09:05:11 +0000

So I had a discussion in this organization about what people wanted to do with their lives and how they came up with making that decision and it was very cool. I discovered that most people were using their passion to fuel their career choices and that they weren’t driven by money. I don’t know if it was because of the recession or what but people were choosing happiness over wealth and that’s a beautiful thing. At the end of the day it goes like this, if you strive to be the best in your field the money will follow.

Unprofessional Speak

atmtkp — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 07:30:42 +0000

So apparently I don’t speak professionally. According to my teacher. Yes things are wrong with the world when even I don’t speak professionally. Not to toot my own horn but I used to be told that I “talk white” yes yes that white and I won’t entertain that. Also that my vocabulary was way too big for the colloquial settings I was in. Oh damn I did it again, colloquial. Anyways, so on top of slowing myself down to prevent my stutter I must also slow myself down to prevent myself from using “unprofessional” words. Maybe my vocabulary would better if I wasn’t reading this dumbed down text books and was reading something of substance….but that is neither here no there.

That’s Bullshit

atmtkp — Tue, 28 Sep 2010 10:26:50 +0000

So the racist man “Jack” is an idiot. The reason the postal service is losing money is because it HAS to deliver the mail EVERYWHERE! All those little hick towns and obscure places yes it must deliver. FedEx and UPS delivers along densely populated routes. I admit they can get rid of some of the post offices they are not all needed but again that goes by population demographics and without knowing more information its hard to say how many need to be gotten rid of…and since when is it ok to compare McDonald’s to the postal service. McDonald’s is a bad word with mostly bad food minus the ice cream, fries and sweet tea. But it’s a place that people are CHOOSING to spend their money at. I mean they get hungry and choose to go eat there. The Postal Service is not a place that you choose to go, you go because you have to. Then the fact that the Postal Service has been around since the start of the New World I would hope that they would have more offices. But I must say that with everything going online as far as banking and email there needs to be some upgrades and shifts in how things operate. But I don’t believe that it is shutting down the post offices or privatizing it will work. So where will all these “unskilled workers” work after the Postal Service goes kaput? I have stated before that not all live in densely populated areas so what will those workers do? They won’t have the opportunity to work in the private sector for FedEx or UPS, what will do….work at McDonalds?Then even the ones who do live in the FedEx/UPS areas they won’t all be allowed to work there especially if they are as unskilled as “Jack” says. Ok so lets say that it is true that they are middle class workers with menial skills and would then be forced to move down to low skilled jobs such as cab driving..wouldn’t that then just create a whole new monster by causing all of these people to be on welfare because they aren’t making as much? When the unemployment rate is steady at 10% you will get no love from anybody by talking about taking away jobs and that’s even without all the racist bullshit that is being spewed. I think Americans would take a $7B loss any day over raised taxes to help with the new abundance of welfare cases and nobody would want to hear about higher unemployment rates or about everybody receiving workers comp. Finally if people thought stamps were expensive now I wouldn’t even want to hear about what stamps would cost in the private sector.

I Want It All, Brand New Socks and Draws

atmtkp — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 16:35:50 +0000

I want:

A denim jacket
Some button down shirts without that tacky ass pocket on the left side…no pockets unless on both sides
To get sexy…even if it will be hidden under clothes during winter…I need to slim down for cuddle time
to get rid of this suitemate and her nasty white girl hair and trashcan….no i want her removed too
to get this camera so I can execute my plan properly
to find more things to do and who to do it with
to make a youtube video with my guitar
to have more time in the day
to be able to maximize on my capital
to find internships
abobe creative suite 5
to really utilize this blog
you to continue not to have these double standards and be happy for my current state of life
to find me a nice hat game…preferably with fedora’s no fitteds
to find a red cardigan
to find my purpose of belonging

….that is all for now.

3am Stroll

atmtkp — Wed, 22 Sep 2010 09:08:36 +0000

A beautiful thing happened. I was taking a 3am stroll filled with restlessness; moonlight illuminating all darkness. The clouds on one side were rolling out and on the other side storm was gliding in. I returned to my room and laid down still restless and then i heard the pitter patter of rain.