us real big huh?

first own apartment. am i ready?

moved into new apartment. it's my own sanctuary. you wanna sow seeds of hate? take that elsewhere. im never leaving.

been busy & broke

...but you understand.

kinfolk

The catastrophic 7.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Port-au-Prince, Haiti and the surrounding region in January of this year still affects over 1,000,000 people daily! Though most media and news venues have ended all reports on this disaster that has killed over 240,000 people, it should be recognized that survivors still exist and are in dire need of OUR help.

Haitians have always been a strong people, as is evident in its rich history. This history includes names such as Toussaint L’Ourverture and François Mackandal, two Afrikan revolutionaries that helped to allow Haiti be recognized as the first nation of the western hemisphere to free itself from slavery. This fortitude has been genealogically passed down, and is evident in the makeshift camps that now dot Haiti where culture and family ties thrive amongst a backdrop of neglect, poverty, and powerlessness.

One hand from outside of Haiti that has been put out in support, yet barely mentioned in popular news sources, comes from the West Afrikan nation of Senegal. Abdoulaye Wade, the president of Senegal, has offered free land to Haitians who have been affected by the earthquake. Wade said that Haitians were the “sons and daughters of Afrika” and proposed that Haitians “return to their origin”. Wade, as a Pan-Afrikan, believes in a united Afrika, and has said that his government would offer parcels of land to Haitians looking for help in his country. Besides giving over 1 million dollars to Haiti, he has also offered an entire area in the fertile region of his country not yet affected by the expansion of the Sahara to Haitians if they come en masse.

Celebrity telethons, Red Cross, and the UN may have been represented on our tv’s and newspapers as the face of deliverance, but in this continuous time of struggle, Brothas & Sistas also continue to offer aid/help/support to Brothas & Sistas.

dont do drugs unless they taste like this...

A hidden gem among downtown L.A.'s jewelry/snack vendors and wannabe galleries (yea im raggin on you LA), The Nickel Diner seems to outshine the dull and literally tasteless eateries that dot the up and coming "scene" of the area. The food is normal, but in a good-way-kinda normal. Instead of offering extravagant and unpronounceable dishes, The Nickel Diner offers unintimidating food that leaves the stomach sufficiently stocked for a busy day or weighted down for a good night's (or day's?) sleep. Also, The Nickel Diner doesn't make us vegetarians feel like outsiders. Our options are well represented.

The highlight of the menu is the salt-peanut cake. With it's crumbled potato chips sprinkled in the frosting it sounds oh so nasty, but trust...when the tongue, teeth, and stomach come into contact with the salty/buttery/sugary goodness that is peanut butter, chocolate, white chocolate, peanuts, and potato chips, you just may catch the Holy Spirit, reach Nirvana, or see Paradise.

Woo, i may have to call a medic just thinking about it. Guide my spirit dear Lawd (towards the Nickel Diner).

I always like to dress well during finals time.

Ol' Frankie and his Stata Center

We Angelenos know Frank Gehry even though we may not know Frank Gehry. You know those shiny slabs of metal perched on the hill downtown that make you search for your sunglasses when u pass it on any sunny southern california day? He did that. You Bilbaínos ( that just love to read this blog ) know him for the Guggenheim Museum which kinda resembles our slabs of metal here in L.A.

I stumbled across the above pictures while studying for my architecture final. Stunning yea? Go ahead and look again, they're indeed real. These are images of the Stata Center at MIT, which is an academic complex that houses many of the geeky (cmon lets be honest here) activities that go on at the school. A lot of negative responses to the structure, but it's daring, original, and seems to do a little dance that requests our visual acceptance....and we appreciate that, right?