Perspectives Vary

Perspectives vary, I guess... As an American citizen I realize that perspectives vary...and that even attempting to EXPLAIN this subject matter often sets off the hypersensitive radar known as political correctness...so right off the bat I must say that I am Black and Japanese, with a little bit of Cherokee and a little bit of Blackfoot...and that MY perspective starts there...and continues herienthereafter...if that's even a word...
So I walk down the streets of America with this knowledge and find myself rarely in the state of awe...because perspectives vary...I have learned this...
SO...
I'm finding out that as an American citizen from North Oakland (which is located just far enough away from Berkeley so that I don't smell the patchoulie, which I think is gross), I find the following items seen as normal behavior :
1- People in this area don't make eye contact when walking down the lane...
Which makes me wonder who, traditionally, is supposed to say hi first?
I'm finding this a major role in the counter productive attitude that looms
in the shadows of passive aggression...think about it...

2- People like to wake up at the crack of dawn, get in front of me in line
and order what I have been calling "the decaf soliloquy"...and what I
mean by that is the (ahem) double decaf half soy machiatto cappafrappa-
lama ding dong thingy with no foam please...and then they get back on their
phone to discuss their state of health, which is subsequently improving...if you
ask them...
AND I'm behind these types of people thinking to myself,
" What in the hell is wrong with you people? Why are you here? It's 7am! There
are those of us who NEED caffeine to form complete sentences and here I am
behind some yoga guru who is obviously so narcissistic that if she became ONE
with anything IT would be irritated to death. So my perspective, which was
formed by watching people like this, has come up with a general synopsis, ok?
And that is : decaf should be illegal between the hours of 2am until 10am.
Perspectives vary I know...I'm just observing with great patience...
Like....uh....
3- Cel phones...(sigh) What I have perceived as normal behavior with cel
phones these days, I would've called schizophrenia not too long ago. But...like I said...perspectives vary...so I accept the difference of opinion...from my own.
Because my perspective is one of many...my perspective? Mine?
Well...who cares...At this point in history I have no idea what to do but to generally accept people who randomly walk out into the middle of a busy street...to hear better, their important conversations...it's also difficult to refrain from laughing at someone
(sometimes they are incredibly good looking women) who decides somewhere
in their mind that talking on the phone is more important than parking a motor
vehicle...so they do it one handed and...I mean god bless people and stuff
but don't they LOOK RIDICULOUS? Truthfully? The answer is yes...

And I' not saying that this is how things will be from here on into eternity...but
history shows us this so far...that perspectives vary...

Do they not? I love America for what I believe in...and that's all I feel is
necessary to say sometimes...and what I have learned is from the result
of a free education...which will be explained next Blog...

U.s.

To the ladies with love...

got a message for you
and I know what to do
I might be trippin' on some things
but I aint that blue

I got eyes that have seen
all kinds of beautiful queens
so demure and enchanting
if ya know what I mean

And so this future of mine
that has given me time
to create all the music
for your perky behinds

It's rewarding me now
and I don't even know how
to explain how it's working
like the infinite Tao

Because I live like a bum
in the warm Cali sun
but the music is the wealth
and it's fun fun fun

And the money is near
for all the blood sweat and tears
it's gonna balance out the stress
of emotional fears

I said a long time ago
that everything that I know
doesn't always mean words
will define what I show

And it's the year of the rat
and every day is all that
in a dog eat dog world
filled with cute kitty cats

oh yes I'm living the dream
and I'm alive so it seems
a single skilled musician
on a path so redeemed

I know that spring will be here
and every year after year
there is something that I crave
and it aint gin or beer

it's that hot body touch
that keeps stressing my clutch
ya'll got me revving my gears
because I want it so much

but I know it's discreet
until it's late on the street
when the spring fever brings us
to market like meat

and every girl that I see
is now a burned fantasy
on my mind like a movie
shown in high rez HD

it's a natural event
until the craving is spent
lying there together
staring up at the vent

yeah it's coming real soon
like the next swollen moon
as it sneaks up and presses us
together like spoons

and my mind is on fire
filled with thoughts that conspire
every moment from the past
into future desires

and no matter what goes
I have music that shows
what I do for a living
keeps my heart on it's toes

I've been ready for this
and everything that I've missed
I'll be able to experience
like every first kiss

U.s.

Words

Words give hope and hope gives us
another couple reasons to get on that bus
Away from the mess and the stress of it all
the on line deceptions and the advert calls...

(ahem)

The money driven quest to achieve the big dream
is like choking on a twinkie for the throat coat cream
it's like steppin' on your friends to be better than them
so they can all bow down and kiss your rear end

Goin' for the gold is like slappin' on a wall
with your own damn face to spite natures call
I compare it to the greed that I read about ya see
that separates the mind and heart from your own body

And the riches that you get when you get what you want
reminds me of the death of the old witch hunts
when you put up all your soul on the market for pay
is a sad sad sad sad sad sad day

And that's why the people who we call all of us
will never seem to know why life is such a fuss
when all we see is money and reward and the bling
then life will never ever be called a sacred thing

So adapt to this way and keep a lock on your heart
London bridge has fallen and the world's torn apart
it's the era of the techno numbing brain feeze culture here
advanced is the word but we seem to live in fear

And all of these damn words don't mean a thing unless you see
love is like the glue which holds the 'them' to you and me
and with that small perspective is a view that all can share
in an instant we can smile about the things we find so rare

U.s.

Coffee please

Without coffee I would just be a pile of crap
I'd be a destination without a google map
I'd be like the sixth toe in some croks with bunyuns
like a solitary cheetoh in a bag of funions

I'd probably have an extra eye above my new pimple
life would get the boot from a place called simple
women would ignore me, gas would take a hike
and I'd be somewhere lonesome on an orange commuter bike

The sky would cave in and the moon would boil
I 'd be just like Popeye with out Olive Oil
and Brutus would be callin' from his mobile I phone
sayin' Olive servin' coffee in bed at his home

Without coffee I would crumble into 67 parts
and all of those parts would be worthless as farts
I'd have to talk to people who drink tea and decaf
the ones who stand in line for an hour and a half

yes...

the ones who order NOT for any reason I can see
(you know) the triple nonfat decaf iced no foam soliloquy
as I begin to rock like tiger crouching in a stance
wondering if this persons neck will some how meet my hands

Mindless Jedi on a quest these decaf morning fiends
showin' off that they can function fine with out caffeine
These are not the droids you seek just quit the the pointless tease
Use the force get out of line and give me coffee please


U.s.

What would YOU do?

In a dream I see leaders at interview sessions
answering questions about hope and oppression
revealing the truth that know one wants to hear
about ruling the people who still live in fear

First of all how do you satisfy folks?
Is it money and hope and a good set of jokes?
I had asked someone recently, " what would you do
If the fate of this country was left up to you? "

I have seen from a stage what is there to be seen
when a crowd comes together as one great machine
it takes more than intention and sincerity
to keep minds satisfied with the greatest of ease

You can sit there and say what you think would be best
with your college degrees and your reprinted tests
but no matter what book you pull down from the shelf
a crowd will reflect what you think of yourself

So now in this dream all these leaders I see
are the same audience who would listen to me
if I was on stage with the mic in one hand
and a heart full of hope for the kids of this land

But the truth can't be reached, it just grows like a tree
and the fruit that it bears won't set everyone free
and in time we mature like an oak in the ground
goin' nuts in a world that keeps spinning around

So leaders that rule with a great money plan
might be missing the logic that children demand
in a world we've created for rich human beings
who are trapped like their fingers by huge diamond rings

Yes we only live once, so do all that you know
your freedom to think is your freedom to grow
leaders wage war to gain money and land
for the freedom they want but still don't understand

If I was in charge, yeah, I wouldn't change nothin'
I 'd wait until everyone finally said somethin'
and then I'd roll tape of this lands history
and I'd edit some things and then legalize weed

I would hire a speaker to say what I've written
I'd settle down slow like a cat from a kitten
I 'd try to seek out some democracy
in a world that sees us as the great ugly beast

There'd be phones made of chocolate for women in need
there be less alcohol and twice as much weed
the age to start drinking would be at 16
so you'd know how to drink when you're grown up ya see

No matter what changes, all people complain
the fact we all do this is kind of insane
but we do and the alcohol magnifies this
I don't drink and this poem has balled up its fist

Oh the leaders are people who WANT to have power
they do and they must spend a lot of their hours
thinking of how to control everything
that's one hell of a job if you stop now and think

and because they are people with children and values
they must have a plan that will work ,man ,I tell you
a plan held in check by the power we give them
or they wouldn't have any white houses to live in...

U.s.

Park THEN speak...

This is a shout out to all of you people who park and speak.
Remember the Speak and Spell?
This is a totally different subject.
Now, I know that multi tasking is important to all of us. I also know that phone conversations are, too. But I 'd like to take a moment to weigh up few things while I'm on the topic of driving.
First of all an automobile is a two handed responsibility. The vehicle was manufactured for this specific purpose, right? I mean, unless I missed a NEWmeeting, it's safe to say that driving a car is something that requires two hands.

But we evolved, yes?
We now have the ability to drive with one hand on the phone. We do. Tis true. I see it all the time. I once dated a girl who, at 8:OO am, on the way to coffee, in the fast lane, doing about 76mph, DRIVING, would take precious care and concentration putting her make up on, using the rear view mirror, while on the phone, shifting the 5 speed manual gear shift with her knee at times, or her other "free" hand, with no consideration for her passengers thoughts, whatsoever. Anxiety, fear and the loss of will to live were some of the things going through my mind, at the time, but actually...I was kind of impressed by her display of multi tasking talents. It wasn't because we never crashed and incinerated. But because she loved me. On a regular basis. Like a wild college co ed panther! For hours! And some of those multi tasking "driving" talents can really make it seem like you're going faster. Even when you are no where near the car. Which is another topic I should not dive into right now. (ahem) What I am saying is that she manged to pull this off gracefully, nonchalantly and subsequently dolled up by the time we reached the cafe'. And she would have looked good the entire time except for one small error. One flaw in her vehicular operative design was parking the car with one hand. I mean... it just LOOKED ridiculous. For some one as attractive, assertive and loquacious as she was, some mornings I would have to jump out of the car and run away. It was just too embarrassing to see without coffee already in me. And some mornings it was good that I did. There were children playing by the curb this one dewy morning. Visibility was a factor. But so was STEERING, BRAKING and SHIFTING. Which, to her, was not as important as her conversation. I was able to jump out of her car, grab the 4 year old little bitty babies and get them to a safe part of the sidewalk with enough time to apologize to their mother, while simultaneously exclaiming, " Doesn't she look like an IDIOT trying to park a manual transmission with ONE HAND?! "
My girlfriend, of course, didn't hear that because she was ON THE PHONE! And lucky for the toddlers the only thing that the car hit was a Tonka toy truck. Those things are really tough, by the way.
So...
What I'm trying to say :
If the obvious danger factor isn't enough...realize this, especially if you are trying to maintain some sort of attractive appeal to others. And women should really understand this. And I mean this with the pure intention of helping. So I ask myself,
Self?
What looks good out there? The pretty ladies, of course.

What doesn't look good ( which means it looks lame and suedo-retarded )?
Pretty ladies parking a car with one hand, on the phone, running over childrens toys.

That's all...I hope that was enlightening and not insulting.

Park the car first. Then pick it up and continue the conversation.
:)

U.s.

Politics? Well...ok...

I am a black and Japanese person. An adult male. A musician, specifically. My degree is of the 

"general education" persuasion. A unique mix of cultures, right? Two extreme opposites, really. At least here in America. More than a few times I have been called "fascinating" by caucasian women. And it's no bad thing at all, let me tell ya. The strange moment in hindsight is wondering what they thought before they found out I was half Japanese. There is usually that moment of pensive uncertainty that occurs upon first meeting. Then I drop the J bomb, or something. Anyway, as an American, I often look for Sidney Portier types for inspiration. Men that don't get the severe guilt by association complex that so many men of color still get.

So...

 I am voting for Obama. My reasons are simple. A change that I can be relieved with.  We have had 42 old white guys in a row (not including Kennedy). We are way over due for a break in the redundant chain of democracy, if this IS the United States of America, right?  I'm convinced that we are the correct era for this particular type of change.  Born in 1969, I have come to realize that the next generations are not going to have it as easy as we did. And what a better way to initiate this handover; this baton; this beast of burden...to a black man with a golden voice. A man that is part of a culture who knows what America is really about. A culture that worked their (and half my) way from the bottom to the top. Just like America itself. With this new change comin' round the bend, it really makes me feel blessed to be alive. To see this happening. To FEEL it coming. To share with all of you the experience of voting for the first black president with a real chance to win.

:)

U.s.