Life, under Trump, or any president of the United States of America, for that matter, is what you make it. If you supported Clinton, Sanders, Bush, Rubio, Cruz, or anyone else, this is who is the president. This is still the land of the free. Trump does not have absolute power. Life is what you make it. If you want to make this a miserable country by rioting and stating he's not your president, that's on you. Rioting does nothing but take down businesses that worked hard to get where they are. Some of them, started from the bottom, and worked their way up to owning their own store. The "American Dream" some call it. Some are still pursuing that dream. The Declaration of Independence says life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Donald Trump will not stop you from pursuing that. You may have to work even harder to obtain that dream, but that's in your hands. I have not stopped pursuing my dreams even though the prices of insulin have gone up 1000 percent and I need that to live. I have gotten no help from government on this front and guess what, it's not stopping me from getting married this June and starting a new chapter. Donald Trump is the president now and I am not going to cry about it. I will adapt and overcome. If Donald Trump is "not (your) president" then who is?
I am a lost boy from Neverland Usually hanging out with Peter Pan And when we're bored we play in the woods Always on the run from Captain Hook "Run, run, lost boy, " they say to me, "Away from all of reality." I am a lost boy,
From Neverland,
At least thats what I dream about,
I'm from the hood no reason to pout
Lucky to get a toy,
Sometimes the belt,
sometimes the hand,
Gotta be strapped if you go out,
Coming home tonight, there's doubt,
Why can't I go to Neverland,
Hang with Peter Pan, I am a lost boy from Neverland Usually hanging out with Peter Pan And when we're bored we play in the woods Always on the run from Captain Hook "Run, run, lost boy, " they say to me, "Away from all of reality."
R.I.P. to homie Harambe, shows you if you don't watch out, you'll be a zombie, Those kinda shootings happened every day on the block
mid afternoon, didn't matter sh*t going down at 2 o clock
I wish I were in Neverland where gorillas don't get shot,
where the good people last and the bad guys get caught, I am a lost boy from Neverland Usually hanging out with Peter Pan And when we're bored we play in the woods Always on the run from Captain Hook "Run, run, lost boy, " they say to me, "Away from all of reality."
I'll take down Capn' Hook with my gang banger skills,
Hang with the Lost Boys and they don't pop pills,
Like the dudes in the streets, hustlins all i see,
if I stay much longer I may end up like Harambe,
Shot because I'm not on the right street,
Shot because I'm not quick on my feet,
Please let me get to Neverland,
I wanna roll with Peter Pan,
and try to take out Captain Hook,
And write a new ending to my book, I been spending most my life, Living in a Gangsta's Paradise.
Because I'm 23 now, will I live to see 24
The way things is goin I don't know... I am a lost boy from Neverland Usually hanging out with Peter Pan And when we're bored we play in the woods Always on the run from Captain Hook "Run, run, lost boy, " they say to me, "Away from all of reality."
When life hands you lemons you make lemonade. On my birthday in 2011, the first day off of my parent's health insurance plan, I had a miniature breakdown. I was working security at the DHL airport and I was working 6 nights a week. Working the strange shifts they gave me left me as a zombie. You are never really awake and you are never really asleep. My mind was always on auto-pilot. I was hitting a wall. I wasn't taking good care of myself and I really had no real reason to live.
On that day in 2011, my birthday, it all came to a head. I was standing, wanding people as they headed into work and BOOM! my blood pressure began to skyrocket. I went down to a knee. My blood sugar rose to the 300's as well. I had no clue what was going on. A co-worker of mine called for the supervisor. They called them lieutenants there for some reason, but whatever. The lieutenant called 9-1-1 and I took the squad to the hospital. This day was my rock bottom. I can honestly say it was one of the worst day in my life. All of my bills were going to have to be paid out of pocket because I had no health insurance. My health, itself was not important to me.
I kind of just gave up. When you have type 1 diabetes, it's hard to explain, but it affects you in ways no one understands but other diabetics. It tugs at your psyche. It is like carrying a rock on your back up a hill. Every day. Every single day. Some days are clear and some days are storming, but every day you start at the bottom of the hill carrying this boulder on your back. This disease has no mercy. This disease has no breaks. It breaks you down. It makes you disciplined. It affects your relationships and your social life. It affects every aspect of your life. There are days I wake up fatigued and days I feel fine. On May 12, 2011, everything crashed and burned and there I was, sitting in the hospital, wondering what I had to do, to make it.
Fast forward to today, May 12, 2016, my 31st birthday. I am here. I made it out of that dark place I was in. Hard work was part of it, but there are many reasons why I am here and in a happy place. Firstly, angels. Yeah, not the halo, flying angels on stained-glass windows, real life angels. I am not a very religious person. I grew up Catholic. I went through all the sacraments and I wear a crucifix on my neck every day. But I don't actively practice. But people throughout my life have shown up to make me laugh, to cheer me up and to carry me when I need carrying. I can't thank them enough for this.
Secondly, friends and family. To me, family are friends and friends are family. They've seen me go through some stuff, man. Like, life or death stuff. They've also seen me triumph over all of that. They make me laugh and make me smile every day. I'd give you all a shout out but you know who you are.
Thirdly, my fiance. Amy has been there for me since I met her a couple of years ago. We have been engaged for a year now and she puts me before herself often. I'm high maintenance and very needy. She doesn't care and is happy to help me.
Finally, attitude changed everything. That day in 2011 when I went to the hospital, I was pessimistic about life. I didn't see a point in fighting anymore. I saw no hope. I hated my job, I hated my diseases, I hated the way I treated myself. That day, I chose to take better care of myself. I woke up everyday with a positive attitude. I went back to trying to make someone smile every day. I realized making others happy makes me happy. You know how in Elf, Santa's sleigh runs on believers, well I run on smiles. Then, Shelli Hill. She helped me get on at Great American, I was able to get on for the benefits and it literally changed everything. I didn't have to spend thousands every few months out of pocket on insulin. I was back and better than ever.
Now, I sit in front of you five years later, a better person. A disciplined person. A happy person. Hopefully, a good friend to everyone I meet. A stronger person. A loving person. A funny person (although Amy would tell you otherwise). I always tell people, I'm so sweet God made me a diabetic. I have to live up to it, and I'd be lying if I told you I do everyday, but most days are good days and I am thankful to God for blessing me with these 31 years and I am so grateful everyday.
This is devastating news for me. Pfife Dawg, from A Tribe Called Quest, a fellow "funky" diabetic, died at 45 from complications due to diabetes. He had bad kidney issues and received a transplant in 2008.
It always pains me to hear news like this because I know how hard the daily struggle is. This disease is not easy and it gives you no breaks. It takes many too soon, like Pfife and comedian Patrice O'Neal (My blog I wrote about that). A battle is being fought everyday. Devin Daley and Brandon Berne along with myself know this all too well. Rest in Peace, Pfife. Everyone's a Q-Tip fan but to me, you were always my favorite. You were influential in the music world and the diabetes world and this world will never be the same without you in it. Lisa Emerson Masterson, mother to Ian Masterson, a recently diagnosed type 1 diabetic, told me one time, "there's just something about type 1 diabetics. They are all super nice. It's just something about them." And to be honest, every juvenile diabetic I have ever met are like the nicest people on Earth. Maybe it's because our pancreases do not secret insulin, our bodies are inundated with sugar which makes us super sweet. I actually think though, that we were chosen because we are tough. We have the ability to endure it. God made us patient. God made us kind. God made us diabetic because we can handle it. There are days we don't feel like getting up. There are days we need help from loved ones like Amy Moses, and my sisters, Laura and Sarah.
The struggle is real, but life is worth fighting for. Pfife is a legend in the hip-hop world, and he passed away from diabetes. I believe there are no diabetics in Heaven and the chains weighing us down on Earth are shed once we get there. Pfife is there where he can have all the carbs he wants and doesn't have to worry again. He is missed here on Earth, but will never be forgotten. Today will be a Tribe day. I will be listening to "Oh My God" and "Check the Rhime" when I finish this post as they are my two favorites. RIP Malik Isaac Taylor.
The American culture is going down the wrong road. Too many people in this world do not accept responsibility for their actions. If a teacher gives a child a bad grade, it's the teacher that is the issue. If an athlete doesn't start, the coach is holding a grudge. I am tired of the "me" generation. People expect to pass exams for medical school now for showing up with no effort to studying. This culture has gone crazy. You can't tell someone "no" without being sued or having someone "call your bluff." A lot of these police killings could be avoided if people just listened to the police in the first place. I struggle with people who believe the are entitled for whatever reason. We are all held to the same damn standards. When we were kids, if we got a bad grade, it was our fault. Now, blame the establishment, blame the government, blame the system. It's never the child's fault. I saw a clip of American Idol, where a girl was crying because she was one vote short. The girl ended up getting the vote. What are we teaching these people? When they cry, give in? How will anyone ever become great? How will this country have discipline? Your child isn't perfect. Don't treat them like they are. I saw a clip where a team has to leave a basketball league because they are "too good." I guess the other teams don't want to be tested. How can a team be too good? I used to be involved in sports where my team was drilled. There were lessons in that. Now it's, "You can't beat my little angel that way." I just laugh out loud at that and people wonder why our country is no longer number one. We have become a culture of babies, softies, and wimps. What would Abraham Lincoln say of this country now? Do not participate in the "me" culture. Hold yourself accountable if you do something wrong.
The last blog I wrote was May 8, 2015. Oh how my life has changed since that day. On May 8, the most important thing to write about was the worst Reds that came to my mind. On May 9, my life changed. I had my birthday party May 9. I turned 30. Yes, time flies, but turning 30 wasn't the reason May 9 was so significant (my actual birthday is May 12, but that's not relevant to the story). May 9 was significant because on that day, I asked the love of my life, Amy Moses, for her hand in marriage. I did it after the crowd sang happy birthday to me, and I faked a low blood sugar episode. I had the DJ play a song that was near and dear to us, and she was shocked he would know to play it. I may have had something to do with that. Anyway, to those of you who don't already knew, she said, yes (after saying 'What the hell' as I fell to my knee).
Photo Courtesy: Brad McIntosh
Since May 8, I have been busy getting my life together. I miss writing and I planned on making a comeback, but I didn't know when the time would be right. I had been working hard to get a promotion at my job, which finally came last month. I have been busy with Amy running all over the place (not literally running as you can probably gather from my figure). I have been really into the Bengals season this year, especially with their best start in history. I could've written about any of those things, however during my hiatus, life as we know it has changed and the world around us has gotten a lot different. The Republican race is lead by a reality TV star, Gay marriage got legalized, but I want to focus on two major issues our world is going through right now...
1. The ISIS Attacks
ISIS has been on our minds for a while now with the be-headings and all the videos where they talk a lot of smack to the U.S.A, but now with the Syrian refugees attempting to come here and ISIS trying to disguise themselves as those refugees to come to American soil, ISIS has been a major topic of discussion. Paris was attacked savagely by ISIS. ISIS shot up and bombed several locations in Paris as you all know and there is nothing to say it won't happen here. In fact, the San Bernadino shootings appear to have an ISIS link now. San Bernadino isn't a big city like Paris, but it happened there. ISIS could come anywhere at any time. I must say it frightens me now more than ever that I work at a large building in our city. ISIS could potentially take it out or have a mass shooting. That scares me. I am a sitting duck at the office.
My fiance, friends, and I went to see Creed and 5 Muslims walked in with backpacks and sat a few rows behind us. When the opening credits began, the backpacks unzipped. It was a scary moment. It happened to just be food for sneaking in, but with the theater shootings lately and all of the ISIS fear, it wasn't easy to sit back and not profile. I know it's politically incorrect to profile, but I'm not going to let politically incorrectness get me killed. I am sorry, but these people looked like the bad guys on television. They may be super good and friendly people, but look at San Bernadino, that dude was a co-worker who was considered friendly. I have to keep one eye open now walking downtown.
I tend to stay away from political debates and any issues surrounding politics, because everyone is entitled to an opinion; however I must say I do not support refugees from Syria coming here until we can be sure that not one of them aren't an ISIS member. I do not care about politics; I care about safety and being secure and even if they let one ISIS member in, he could potentially blow up the White House or Madison Square Garden or Great American Ballpark. How can we let people in knowing one could be a terrorist? Does San Bernadino change the mind of the president and others? I am not against helping out people who need our help, but not at the expense of jeopardizing other lives. So if they can prove that 100% of these people have no connections to ISIS, let them in. If not, no one can get in. Suspend. Now.
2. Racial Cop Shootings
We had a shooting here in Cincinnati where an unarmed black man was killed by a police officer. The man was pulled over for not having a front license plate. Needless to say, this is uncalled for. The Baltimore riots was for a black man who died in transport.The Chicago video that just came out shows a very disturbing teenager getting shot over and over again and then the cop said the boy was lunging at him. All of this is very inappropriate behavior and the Cincinnati Cop and the Chicago Cop deserve to be charged for murder. My take on the situation? Don't give them a reason to shoot. No, I don't know what it's like to be black and no I don't know the struggle. I do, however know what it is like to be profiled. I was pulled over just for being an 18 year old out at 3:00 a.m. The cop insisted I was coming from a party, which I wasn't. He insisted I drank, which I didn't. I remained calm, and he wrote me a ticket, but I did not try to run and I did not try to argue even though I still don't think I did anything wrong.
Now this is not near what a black person goes through when they get pulled over and gosh there are so many racist cops out there who want to blow their heads off for no reason, but don't give them any reason. Stop running. Let them pull you over, just remain calm and it gives you a better chance to survive. I can say all of this, but some blacks may respond with "Well you aren't black, you don't know the struggle." That's not the point. The point is Black Lives Matter endorse hating whites. Blame whites for your struggles, blame whites for the cop killings, blame whites because you haven't made it. Always blame someone else, because you are black. If you cant rap or play basketball you are screwed right? It's funny because watching Mike Tyson get out of poverty, it wasn't white people holding him back, it was the thug drug dealers on every corner. He was dealt a crappy hand but he worked hard every day, trained twice as hard as a white boxer with his talent, because he had to, and he made it out and he's unstable. If he can do it, you can do it. Life is what you make it. It's the situations you put yourself in. Don't talk back to the cops and you may get a warning. Don't give them a reason to arrest you. I'm sorry but to blame whites is a cop out, maybe you were dealt a crappy hand, but guess what we all have problems and doors shut on us, doesn't matter the color of our skin or how much money we make, we all have struggles we deal with. I have to fight to live every day, and I hate it sometimes and sometimes I don't feel like taking medicine, but I do it, because I have to. This isn't much different. It may suck being black. It may be the worst thing to be (black in America -- I'm sure its not the worst but let's say it is) --but its as simple as getting up and persevering, don't make excuses, because excuses make you seem weak. "I'm black so life is so hard." Well I have news for you, life is hard and we all have different challenges but to make a simple excuse, because I'm black, is a cop out.
I'm not saying there are dirty cops that will shoot these people anyway, but not all cops are racist, and not all of them have our best interest at heart. Their job is to protect and serve and several incidents lately show they are taking the law into their own hands, which is not right and those men are bad people, but to blame an entire race is exactly what slave owners did in the 1800's and Hitler did in the 30's. It's not an entire race causing you harm. It offends me that people think all whites are the problem. We aren't. You can't lump an entire group of people into one group. That's stereotyping and exactly what the people complaining don't like.
The big thing in baseball this year is The Franchise Four where each team will elect four players from their history who best represents their respective teams. You can vote for them here: Vote for the Franchise Four. In light of this and as requested by the legendary Goodness Gracious James Ball of fire, I decided to do the Reds' Franchise Fails as I am a Reds fan.
We all know the legend of the Big Red Machine and the great 8 and all that. The Reds have a great history: Rose, Bench, Morgan, Perez, and Concepcion (among others) from the Big Red Machine and even before that, Frank Robinson and The Great Ted Klusewski, or Big Klu as Dustin Hoffman would say in Rain Man.
After the Big Red Machine players like Larkin and Davis showed how the Reds were best represented, so there are no shortage of players to pick for the Franchise Four. My picks if you are curious are:
1. Johnny Bench (who was a key component of the machine and possibly the greatest catcher of all time, and George Clooney is a big fan so he's doing something right)
2. Joe Morgan (also a B.R.M. guy and a badass, the elbow twitch he did at the plate made all the ladies ga ga in the stands)
3. Barry Larkin (the last captain for the Reds. He had big shoes to fill after taking over for Davey Concepcion, a fan favorite and boy he did. He helped the Reds win a 'wire to wire' World Series in 1990 and played his entire career in his hometown)
4. Pete Rose (I know he bet on baseball and all that but the dude lived and breathed Reds baseball. He was a hometown kid who had hometown grit and played the game how it was supposed to be played. He played the game with attitude in a blue collar city that appreciated it)
Now to the point you've all been waiting for, the Franchise Fails. As you know, this year's Reds team has a pitcher on it named Kevin Gregg. He was a non roster invite to Spring Training and somehow made the team. On Opening Day, he gave up a game-tying two run homer and hasn't looked back since then. He is the inspiration for this list. He will not make it as he's only been a Red for 2 months. His tenure is already a gigantic fail though. He doesn't even deserve the effort in typing this up.
The Franchise Fails have to be more impactful than a journeyman reliever like Gregg. They have had to have sucked so badly that the franchise actually suffered because of them and that leads me to another pitcher:
Franchise Fail #1: Jimmy Haynes. Haynes won 15 games for the Reds in 2001. That was amazing compared to the awfulness of the pitching staff at that point. That got the Reds to give him a 2.5 million dollar deal to re-sign for one year. Haynes made only 5 appearances in 2002 while compiling a 9.6 ERA (pretty terrible for an ace). Jimmy Haynes stunk so bad, you'd think he was the stinch from a pair of Haynes worn 3 days in a row.
Franchise Fail #2: Eric Milton. Milton had a pretty good reputation before joining the Reds. He even pitched a no-hitter in 1999 for the Twins. After the 2004 season, he signed a three year deal worth $25 million dollars. The dude went on to have an 8-15 record with a 6.47 ERA (one of the worst ERAS for a full time starter in NL history). That's what happens when you put a fly ball pitcher in GABP. He gave up 29 homers in 26 starts the next season, and finally after 4 starts in 2007 had Tommy John surgery. ESPN named him to the all-overpaid team and he deserved that.
Franchise Fail #3: Willy Taveras. Taveras had an okay career before signing a two year deal worth $6.25 million dollars in December 2008. During his 2009 season with the Reds he had the lowest slugging percentage (.285) and worst on base percentage (.275) for all National League players with at least 350 plate appearances. Thankfully they traded him before 2010. Jeeze, he made you miss Corey Patterson (who should be an honorable mention himself) and that's saying a lot.
Franchise Fail #4: Brandon Larson. Larson was one of the most sought after infielders after his solid 1997 season with LSU. He was drafted in the first round (14th overall) by the Reds in the draft. The dude was a monster in the minors, winning Reds minor leaguer of the year in 2003. In 2004, he was brought up to the big leagues with tons of hype. The guy only played in 40 games for the Reds and hit .212. He was never heard from again.I don't even know how they managed to make an action baseball card of him.
So those are just a few of the fails. There are plenty more. Paul Wilson comes to mind, along with Gary Majewski, Roberto Kelly, and others. If you want to read a related blog I wrote regarding the Coolest Reds of all time, click here: 50 Coolest Reds, including starting lineup, 25 + 40 man rosters. Maybe this will take the bad taste out of your mouth of these fails of men.
Song of the Day: In honor of James Ball, Big Balls, AC/DC
