Oogie Boogie Nigger

The title of this post is a quote from Dave Chapelle's skit about the black, white supremacist. I just had that phrase directed at me less than 10 minutes ago. I feel like I swallowed a battery so I'm not going to really go in depth on this or even analyze it--just going to give some specifics.

I left work early because my stomach is on fire. I rode the bus, which drops me off literally right in front of my house. In the 40 or so necessary steps to get home a car full of 18-23 year old white males passed by. One turned as he saw me and yelled "oogie boogie nigger".

OK. I lied. I'm going to analyze this a little. Its kind of like the movie Crash there were a lot of things that had to happen for me to be placed in that situation. I had to leave work 2 and half hours earlier than I planned. I had to catch the bus instead of walking. The front door on the bus had to not be working, and my dumb ass had to try to get on and off on a door that was broken. The car with the men in question had to pass by when it did. And finally, the guy had to randomly have on his mind to say what he said. May not mean anything to you, but to me it's interesting. Think about all of that coincidental randomness, because had one of those things not occurred I may not have this story. Maybe thats why I don't like Crash... cause things connect like that for me without a movie. Next semester I'll probably have a class with one of those guys in the car.

Oh yeah racism is alive and well.

Greenky.org: Taylor the super-hippie's blog

After my Alternative Spring Break Trip to Maryville, TN, and drinking the hippie kool-aid, I came back with more of a desire to be environmentally friendly. (I grew up on Captain Planet and it was much more than a show...to this day you'll catch me picking up trash and occasionally even singing the theme song.) Anyways, I made a conscious effort to become more educated and spread some of the values and information that my new found friends had presented, and now I give you: http://greenky.org/

My buddy Taylor Shelton runs this blog and let me say, this guy knows a lot. And what he doesn't know he finds. I think it's a great quality more people should incorporate into their lives. I know I try to.

There are many hot button issues that go on in here Kentucky, and while they may not be the exact same elsewhere, they represent some of the other environmental issues that go on around the nation. Also, there's a lot of good political information and progressive ideas to ponder. Taylor considers both sides, and thankfully, is one of those people that cares about people and the environment. (Unlike some of those people who like animals more than people.)

So here is my recommendation for you all. It is time to start thinking about what goes on outside of your own world, and if you like visit http://greenky.org/

We are not encouraged to empathize or think about things from the other side. I used the term hippie with a negative connotation before spring break, and now it's a term of endearment. Why? Because instead of people being strange or weird? They are conscious and caring. Sure we do not agree or see eye to eye on certain things.

I recall a Greenthumb (University of Kentucky environmental group) meeting where Taylor was leading a discussion. The weather was nice so we were outside. I was sitting on the ground in my usual Ecko Jeans and T-shirt, which was pulled together with a pair of Olympic Nike Air Max 180's (the shoes Barkley wore with Dream Team 1). I thought to myself wow I am out of place. Everybody else has on canvas shoes or sandals, and I am sitting here with not just leather shoes, but patent leather shoes that have to be 10x worse than regular leather. And guess what? Nobody was bothered by it, because I cared enough to attend and the rest of the group was happy to have somebody enthusiastic and willing to help.

People aren't going to think the same, act the same, or share the same values, and but we have to coexist. I believe there will be there will be a continued reciprocal relationship between Greenthumb and myself, built on recognizing the importance of each others concerns.



Oh yeah... Why can't people other than the environmentalists care about the environment?