Thursday, January 06, 2005
Captiv(n)ation
After watching so illmatic and quite dense movies last night and this morning (yeah,the broke life) and quelling over my perceived lack of depth of my scholastic pursuits (for yall that don't know I've returned to school to study of all things - fashion), I came across this;
Sagitarius
"You can be the most intelligent, well-read, diligent person in the world and work at your poetry for 20 years and still be no good at it." That's what poet August Kleinzahler told the East Bay Express. He discourages his students from becoming poets; he says it's not so much a career as a disease. On the other hand, Sagittarius, I'd like to remind you that most other pursuits do reward hard work and dogged devotion. And it's a perfect moment for you to meditate on that fact, since you now have extraordinary power to make long-term commitments to good intentions. Is there any labor of love that the ambitious part of you can imagine spending the next 10 years perfecting?
This touched a nerve. I was further impacted by an article my peoples OMI put me onto called The Tragedy of the Commons by Garrett Hardin, 1968(<--CLICK TO READ). This sent me into a dither contemplating the nature or definition of "freedom" and the present state of our world. Which didn't help after watching Manchurian Candidate and Irobot.
Who is free? Is anyone really free? Can freedom truely be attained? Is freedom buying this or that? Is it a job that allows you to just pay the bills? Is it closing our eyes and biting the juicy steak, to be thrown into ignorant bliss reprogramed as a rockstar? Is it on a deserted island? Is it within family and friends? What is freedom? Why is it important to us all? Is it just a relative tainted term or word? What?
So then I delved into on of my more infrequent (these days) conversations with my infamous Ma Dukes (aka the nagging revolutionary). I posed her the question on freedom, thus spawning a dialog about the state of the world and how it is degrading at a very consistant pace. I told her of my guilt to be pursuing something as superficial as fashion. She said don't fret over something I love and enjoy doing. She went on to explain to me that in the book she is presently reading "The Millionaire Next Door" that they (incognito millionaires) recommend that people guide their children to service the rich in some manner. But being the history buff she is she comforted my distress by telling me of the black women (most specifically in Old New Orleans lived their lives making clothes not only for the rich but most of within the community, including themselves. They were called "Modistes" and had a rich importance within the community as they stradled between varying socio-econimical groups. She told me that my(one of my many) craft will always be essential even in the basics of life because we cannot survive as humans without covering our skin. lol...is fashion forever?
So where does it all come together. My "free" is and will always be my creativity balanced out with my ability and love for thought. Starting with my horoscope, one of the things I have done more at my leisure these days is my poetry. Only inking when inspired rather than feeling I must fulfill some personal quota to produce. With going back to school I know it will take me more time to acheive my complete goal than the average 18yr old college student in light of my very much grown folk responsibilities. That has concerned me but my mother flips her mantra for me on me "you must find joy in the process." So if the world society collapses I feel comfortable thinking that I have a basic skill that will be needed. And if it just goes on as is, I got something to work with too.
But I still wanna know...what is free?
Today my "free" is the ability to go pick up my youngun from school just as the bell rings...I don't remember my Mom doing that. *smile*
waytoopensive.
After watching so illmatic and quite dense movies last night and this morning (yeah,the broke life) and quelling over my perceived lack of depth of my scholastic pursuits (for yall that don't know I've returned to school to study of all things - fashion), I came across this;
Sagitarius
"You can be the most intelligent, well-read, diligent person in the world and work at your poetry for 20 years and still be no good at it." That's what poet August Kleinzahler told the East Bay Express. He discourages his students from becoming poets; he says it's not so much a career as a disease. On the other hand, Sagittarius, I'd like to remind you that most other pursuits do reward hard work and dogged devotion. And it's a perfect moment for you to meditate on that fact, since you now have extraordinary power to make long-term commitments to good intentions. Is there any labor of love that the ambitious part of you can imagine spending the next 10 years perfecting?
This touched a nerve. I was further impacted by an article my peoples OMI put me onto called The Tragedy of the Commons by Garrett Hardin, 1968(<--CLICK TO READ). This sent me into a dither contemplating the nature or definition of "freedom" and the present state of our world. Which didn't help after watching Manchurian Candidate and Irobot.
Who is free? Is anyone really free? Can freedom truely be attained? Is freedom buying this or that? Is it a job that allows you to just pay the bills? Is it closing our eyes and biting the juicy steak, to be thrown into ignorant bliss reprogramed as a rockstar? Is it on a deserted island? Is it within family and friends? What is freedom? Why is it important to us all? Is it just a relative tainted term or word? What?
So then I delved into on of my more infrequent (these days) conversations with my infamous Ma Dukes (aka the nagging revolutionary). I posed her the question on freedom, thus spawning a dialog about the state of the world and how it is degrading at a very consistant pace. I told her of my guilt to be pursuing something as superficial as fashion. She said don't fret over something I love and enjoy doing. She went on to explain to me that in the book she is presently reading "The Millionaire Next Door" that they (incognito millionaires) recommend that people guide their children to service the rich in some manner. But being the history buff she is she comforted my distress by telling me of the black women (most specifically in Old New Orleans lived their lives making clothes not only for the rich but most of within the community, including themselves. They were called "Modistes" and had a rich importance within the community as they stradled between varying socio-econimical groups. She told me that my(one of my many) craft will always be essential even in the basics of life because we cannot survive as humans without covering our skin. lol...is fashion forever?
So where does it all come together. My "free" is and will always be my creativity balanced out with my ability and love for thought. Starting with my horoscope, one of the things I have done more at my leisure these days is my poetry. Only inking when inspired rather than feeling I must fulfill some personal quota to produce. With going back to school I know it will take me more time to acheive my complete goal than the average 18yr old college student in light of my very much grown folk responsibilities. That has concerned me but my mother flips her mantra for me on me "you must find joy in the process." So if the world society collapses I feel comfortable thinking that I have a basic skill that will be needed. And if it just goes on as is, I got something to work with too.
But I still wanna know...what is free?
Today my "free" is the ability to go pick up my youngun from school just as the bell rings...I don't remember my Mom doing that. *smile*
waytoopensive.
