Gangsta Mittens
Words combined to express thoughts. Pictures displayed to convey emotion. Opening my brain to the world.

May
12

Yesterday was just a good day. It started off simple enough. Went to work, had a couple meetings… the usual. At about 1p i get a text message that 9th and Monie Love are on their way to XM for their interview, which was perfect because it wasn’t scheduled to start until 2. So i do a little more work for about an hour and head to the lobby to wait. Two o’clock comes and goes. While i’m standing in the lobby shooting the shit with Nate, fuckin Crazy Legs walks in. I’m pretty excited about that but I’m also a little annoyed because it’s going on 2:10 and my guests are nowhere to be found.

A few minutes later Monie walks up… My Gawd… she’s just beautiful. I remember when i was first learning about hip hop and figuring out what i liked and didn’t like. I liked Monie from jump. She was like the little sister of hip hop if that makes sense. She is easily one of the most passionate people I’ve ever met. And meeting a woman, who is that passionate about music in general, but hip hop especially? Just WOW.

Shortly after that 9th pulled up and we went up to the interview. When we get to the studio it’s Crazy Legs, 9th and Monie… just shooting the shit. I mean imagine standing there and listening to like some folks you’ve been following for YEARS talkin about their kids… it was surreal. Part of me felt like i was intruding… but at the same time it was like being a part of something really big. The highlight of that moment was when Monie said something to the effect that she had been trying to get 9th and Crazy Legs to meet for some time and she thanked us for making that happen. Now i know that shit was just a damn coincidence, but i mean, I had that woman’s cassette way back when and she’s thanking me for stuff… craziness. The interview went really well and i think i’m back in the game for pushing the True School Radio idea. 9th and Monie with a radio show? (with guest appearances by mittens!!!) That’s just wow.

Last night was the True School House Party at Liv too. Just imagine a party where every single song makes you think back to “the good old days.” For every song i heard last night i remember what was going on in my life when i was listening to that song, where i was living, who i was friends with… all of that stuff. I miss that about music. It’s so rare that something i buy today will have that same nostalgic effect for me. But for four hours yesterday I got to dance, and sing, and reminisce on the good old days… and i got to say whatup to Grap… that always makes me smile (if you know me, you should know why that’s a big deal).

But the best part of my night came when i got a text message from this guy sayin he’d be off work early. I spent the end of my night dancing with (on) him and headed home to devour some chicken wings… does it get any better than that?

May
11

Remember those commercials?

Well that’s what i’m doing, I am going back to Jamaica. I’m REALLY looking forward to this trip. The idea of just relaxing and being away from the stresses of my daily life is making it hard for me to be patient. Although the San Fran trip will also be a vacation, it’s going to be different. I don’t feel that that’s going to be a relaxing trip, so i’m glad to have this “pre-vacation” to gear up for the other trip.

But yeah, Jamaica. I’ve only been once before and that time it was to Negril. It was beautiful beyond belief there. This time around it’ll be Ocho Rios. I plan to take no less than two million pictures because the ones i took last time were AMAZING!

So this weekend is going to be a bit of a blur.

This afternoon I’m helping with an interview for Subsoniq. Monie Love and 9th Wonder will be stopping by to shoot the shit for awhile.

Then tonight I’ll be here:

That’s always guaranteed to be a good time.

Saturday I’m going to a happy hour in an attempt to be more social and well-liked.
Sunday is, of course Mother’s Day. My sister’s and i will be cooking brunch for the family and spending the day with mom.

Next weekend is my niece’s graduation from college… time is FLYING by. I need to start making my mark on the world ASAP

May
10

*insert drumroll*

A –

YAY, Bitches!
Sure it was my 2 credit class and sure it was Ethics which is basically learning what to say when asked what one *should* do and sure most people don’t really do what’s ethical… but so what? My GPA is creepin up!

That was a welcome surprise. I have two more grades that will need to post: Family Law and Evidence. Family Law will probably post soon. Evidence I’m not so sure about. I’ve been giving a lot of thought lately to what i want to do after graduation. Although the $130,000 starting salary sounds WONDERFUL, i really don’t want to follow that path. I want to do something I’m interested in and something that i feel will make a difference. Me sorting through paperwork at some huge law firm isn’t my idea of satifying. I’m toying with the idea of pursuing a career as a public defender or perhaps a prosecutor. I had an interesting convo with a guy who prosecutes children. Sounds fucked up, right? I was all ready to be pissed at him, but he was talking about how he has the leeway to decide the types of punishment and how he pushes for rehabilitation for youth. If i had an opportunity to do something like that where i had that much autonomy it might not be so bad.

In the fall I will be taking Administrative Law, Sales and Secured Transactions, and Criminal Trial Advocacy. The last court is all about learning how to try a case. I’m hoping to kill two birds with one stone on that one: 1) See if I really want to be a trial lawyer and 2) Work on speaking up and being more confident. Those three classes equal 9 credit hours and i’ll also have office hours for the Admin Law Review. I’m also going to be helping to edit the publication and hopefully be interviewing and trying to do something law related for next summer. Ideally I’d like to quit my current job and start working as a law clerk in the Spring. We’ll see where that goes.

May
09

**Disclaimer**
This entry isn’t about cheating. If that’s what you’re looking for, please exit stage left.

Now…
I am socially awkward… or maybe i should say, i can be socially awkward. I don’t really do well with small talk and my networking skills are deplorable. I’m good at talking to my friends. I’m good at running my mouth with people i know well. But for the most part i am painfully shy when it comes to unfamiliar situations.

A huge part of getting a job upon graduation will have to do with my ability to network, small talk, initiate convo etc. That scares me. To say i have anxiety issues is probably a gross understatement. Some days I’m not able to leave the house. So imagine trying to force myself to not only leave the house but to throw myself into an uncomfortable and unfamiliar situation. It’s not something that i look forward to.

I can’t even begin to count the number of times i’ve seen someone that i recognize and i’ll go over to say “hello” or something. As soon as they respond i’m ready for the convo to end. So while they’re going thru the whole “OMG! I haven’t seen you in so long how are you?!” I’m like “well it was good to see you bye!” That makes for a most awkward convo.

I’ve been trying to force myself into becoming more comfortable in social situations. By forcing myself to go to happy hours, trying to join clubs/organizations, etc., i’m hoping that i can learn to be comfortable in social settings and to gain confidence in my ability to talk to people and carry on conversations. I am also taking a course next semester that will simulate trials. I hope that it will make me feel more comfortable with my public speaking and help me to stop feeling so awkward.

It’s hard forcing yourself past your boundaries and making yourself try something new, but i’m workin on it!

May
08

I took my last exam of the semester last night. I am officially finished with my second year of Law School. I am now officially half way there (i’m a part time student). As gueling as this process is, it isn’t as bad as i expected. Well it kinda is… but I’m not suicidal.

I remember when it all started… i didn’t know what in the hell to expect. That seems like so damned long ago. I was thinking back to a surprise party that my friends threw for me to celebrate my nerdy accomplishment… the people that were there… I don’t talk to more than half of them now. If someone would have told me on that day to look around the table and pick the 4 people i thought i would be cool with three years later, i’m not sure whether i would have guessed correctly. Throughout my life I’ve been a bit of a friend collector. I liked having lots of “friends” and knowing people. It kinda made me feel important to be able to go somewhere and always see a “friend.” Over the last few years though, I’ve started to move away from that. It’s kinda nice to go somewhere and not recognize folks. There’s a certain comfort in anonymity… But yeah, here i am three years later. I am a completely different person, and i like it.

So with year #2 behind me I can officially switch gears to my summer plans… getting to catch up with a friend i haven’t seen in over a year, going to Jamaica with someone I love dearly, travelling across country on a 6 week adventure… there’s just so much for me to look forward to and quite honestly, I deserve every bit of it.