Everyone who knows Charles Black will tell you that I am a bit of a health nut.  I didn’t just get this body by eating just anything.  That is what makes it so painful to walk into the 95-7 RnB kitchen and see all kinds of food I don’t need right now from Sam’s club:  3 cheesecakes, a couple dozen cupcakes, pizza, peanuts, and a six pound bag of pretzels.  Dang I gotta go…

I was riding through Hampton University the other day and I saw the Pirate marching band practicing.  It reminded me when I was in the band.  I was a drummer. Yep, member of the junior marching band while in high school.  I was dedicated and worked hard to master my instrument.  I knew, one day, the band director would promote me to the senior marching band.  And I couldn’t wait!!   Yessiree buddy!  Wearing that royal blue & white uniform, marching in a parade, performing during halftime of football games, having all the girls call out my name while I kept a ferocious beat, yeah boy, bring it on, I’m ready like Freddy.  Then the day came when the band director said, “Thomas, you’re in the senior band.”  Talk about being happy!  I heard a choir singing “Oh Hap-py Da-ayy.”  I was SO full of joy!  I felt like a kid on Christmas Day!!  Then I heard the band director add, “Be at practice tomorrow morning at 6.”  “SIX?!?  Cuse me…….Six a clock?  In da MOANIN’?”  “That’s right, six in the morning, be there.”  Yeah well, so much for being in the band!  Time to try out for the football team.  Shoot, I’m too big to be playing in the band anyway.  Funny thing, after I made the football team……. coach had us practicing at SIX IN DA MOANIN’!!!  Aw man, at least the band had girls.  You ever smelled a football locker room at SIX N DA MOANIN’?  It’ll mess up your entire day!!  Have you in home eck class all day baking cookies……..just cuz it smelled good.

FreshFest I

I checked out a new food establishment the other day, well, new to me.  I’ve been past it several times and each time it’s packed but today it wasn’t, so I figured I’d check it out.  Upon entering, much to my surprise, it was a burger joint.  Now, I’m not a big fan of red meat.  Matter of fact, I stopped eating it totally about 17 years ago.  However, about 15 years ago, I took my son to Disney World in Orlando, Florida.  We travelled by train from Washington, DC……21 hours……ONE WAY!!  Just before we boarded the train for the return trip, we stopped at a restaurant.   I (being extremely hungry) decided to get a big fat juicy steak.  Oh, it was so Gee double O – Dee good!!  We left the restaurant and boarded the train for the 21 HOUR ride home.  Fifteen minutes after the train left the station, my stomach started to freak out!  It sounded and felt like a herd of wild elephants were fighting a pride of lions during the migration of the wildebeests on the Serengeti.  If bathroom run was an Olympic event, I would have won gold and set a new world record.  Talk about a miserable 21 hour ride….. bathroom run, two times a hour for twenty one hours….. bounced up and down, side to side, back & forth.  And when I wasn’t making a bathroom run, I was trying to fend off this 70 year old drunk woman who thought I was cute!  Rather than going through that type of misery again, I decided to eat red meat once a month.  So, I ordered a bacon burger combo…..burger with bacon, regular fries, and a regular drink.  Paid with a credit card, got my receipt and waited for my grub…..and waited…….and waited…..and waited.  While waiting, I looked at my receipt.  “Hey, hold  up…..’cuse me ma’am, uh, you made a mistake………you charged me $10.27, I got the bacon burger combo, that’s  $5.89.”  She said, “sir….we don’t sell combo’s.  You buy everything a la carte.”   I’m thinking…..A LA CARTE?  What is this, Chez (Shay) Burger?  Oh, we French now huh!  So, I’m standing there with my mouth open, looking at the a la carte menu…….waiting……waiting…….and waiting for my grub. Then it dawns on me, I just paid over $10 for a burger, fries and a soda!  WHAT THE……!  OH THIS BETTER BE THE BEST BURGER EVER MADE OR THOUGHT OF IN THE NEXT TEN LIFETIMES!  TEN DOLLARS!!!  WHAT’S THE NAME OF THIS PLACE!!   FIVE GUYS?!?  Oh!  That’s the problem!  You see, there’s only ONE Burger King, ONE Wendy, ONE Carl’s Jr. and ONE Ronald McDonald but there are FIVE guys……..that’s TWO DOLLARS A GUY.  Get rid of some of those guys and reduce the price.   Suggestion….why not call it “This Guy” or “Him” or “Guy with Burger” or even “His’n!”  C’mon man…..Ten Dollars!  Child Please!!

Man! Fresh Fest was crazy sat.night in ptwn.According to the folks at ntelos pavilion it was the second largest audience in the history of the venue.AND,that audience was up all night dancing and singing like it was 1995.

I was really looking forward to seeing “The Biz”,and Doug E.Fresh.Biz had mic problems and cut his set short,and Doug had to go on stage before he was quite ready,but they both handled the situation like pros.Big Daddy Kane was sharp like a blade too.I respect that. I love concerts at ntelos,cause they’re more like parties than shows.My cute little chocolate home girl Angie Stone is coming soon.I’m trying to catch that one too.

Once again it’s time for the Hoodie Awards in Vegas!!!!! Thank you to Glen at Dillard’s for hooking up the shopping spree again this year!!! What’s about to happen in Vegas, is going to stay in Vegas Baby!!!

It’s Sunday night and I’m chillin’ watching pre-season football.  Man, I’m glad football is back even if it IS a game between two teams I dislike (Dallas & Cincinnati).  I don’t care.  I’m watching!!!  I wuz watching an “On Demand” movie till I remembered the game was on.  The movie was…….well…..different.  It’s entitled “Repo Man.”  I figured it was about cars being repo’d.  Not quite!  It was about transplanted body parts being repo’d.  Huh?  Yep!  The repo man would shoot you with a stun gun and repo that liver, heart, kidney or whatever.  What kind of demented mind came up with this?  I figure I’ll finish watching it tomorrow.

Last week, the Boy Scouts celebrated an anniversary.  That reminded me of my time as a scout.  I made it to the rank of “First Class.”  To progress farther than that, you had to have merit badges.  But for what we were good at, they didn’t have merit badges.  You know, things like “macking” the ladies or playing the dozens.  The only hike we did was to hike a football.  I remember this particular camping trip, one of the guys brought TV dinners to eat.  You ever tried to cook a TV dinner over an open fire?

I guess the Scouts got me ready for the Army……well, kinda….. but not really.  The only things in common were you wore a uniform and you camped out (the Army called it a “field exercise.”)  Yeah, well, I’ve never been the outdoors type.  Every time I went to the field, I complained so much, they sent me back to garrison (civilization).  In the morning, to wash yourself, put water in your helmet.  COLD WATER!  Huh?  Gotta go to the bathroom for #2, dig a hole. “WHOA, WHOA, WHOLE UP NOW, WAIT, WAIT, WAIT!!  Man, its’ bugs and reptiles crawling around out here!  I ain’t squatting over no hole!  Besides, I’m personnel!  I’m SUPPOSE to be in an office somewhere!”  One time I had to pull guard duty at a place called NATO two six.  They gave me a M16 and 5 bullets.  FIVE BULETS!! Are you kidding!  It was so dark out there, I couldn’t see light……. but I could hear.  And I heard something in the bushes.  So I loaded my weapon and hollered, “Al-ight, don’t be no fool” (I was supposed to say “Advance & be recognized.”)  Then, I heard another sound from dem bushes.  I locked a round in the chamber (meaning I loaded one o dem bullets) and put my weapon on automatic.  I’m ready to rock & roll baby! That’s right, I was now…..RAM-BRO!!  I hollered ”Bring it on!!”  It was at that time that this big, huge, 3 foot, 90 pound RABBIT came running from outta da bushes toward me.  The only thing faster than that rabbit was ME!  I dropped my weapon and hauled ____.  I was headed for the guard shack…….till it dawned on me………. I’m RUNNING from a rabbit!  I can’t let my boys know I’m running from a rabbit AND I DROPPED MY WEAPON (actually, I threw it at him as I was running backwards).  So I went back, picked up my weapon, and hid inside a deuce and a half (big ole Army truck) till my watch was over.  To this day, none of my Army buddies know this story, so I’d appreciate it, if you kept it to yo’self.

My son Bakari, got the traditional metal BLACK braces, and they look pretty good, even if I do say so myself.  Woodard Orthodontics offers all types of braces including the clear ceramic, and they’re a preferred Invisiline 
Provider.  They, (Woodard Orthodontics), except most Insurance plans and offer several payment options.  Call for a free consultation, 523-0114 or visit Woodard Orthodontics Dot Com.

Okay it’s time for the 4th Annual Day of Sharing with Theressa. For the past three years I have asking barbers and beauticians to volunteer to style or cut children’s hair for free for the first day of school. You know this event is very dear and near to my heart. Growing up in Moton Park in a family of thirteen, I would always wish I get my hair done professionally for the first day of school, but you know my mama could not afford it. Then one year I think I was about 12 years old and my mama made an appointment for me to get my little bit of hair done at beauty salon. I could not sleep the night before, because I was very excited. The only place I got my hair done was in the kitchen sitting on a stool as my mama sat in a chair beside the stove with the straightening comb. She would have that blue magic hair grease and dip that straightening comb in that blue magic hair grease, blow on it and fry your hair till it lay down. You had to keep that towel around your neck cause every now and then she would burn you or drop the straightening comb down your back and it would make you wanna cuss, but I only cussed in mind, cause I wanted to live!!!
Well the day finally came and I went to the beauty salon. The place was jammed packed and people were complaining that they were taking too long. It did not bother me; I was just excited to sit in the chair to get my hair done. When it was finally my turn, I just felt like a little princess and my dream was finally coming true. When my hair was done, I wanted to go visit all of my friends to show off my hair, but my mama was like you get out there and start sweating and mess your hair up girl, I’m gonna hurt you. So I quickly came in the house and sat in front of the fan, scared that my hair would sweat back. On the first day of school, I had my school supplies that were given to us by the Salvation Army, had my hair did, and wore my sister’s hand me downs, but they were new to me cause I never wore them and I was looking so cute.

Till this day I have not forgotten how I felt when I had my hair done for the first time at a beauty salon and I thought if I was ever in a position to give another child that same feeling I would. So with that said, Barbers and Beauticians let’s help make some little girl feel like a princess and some little boy feel like a prince. Remember when you give it always comes back, pressed down, shaking together and running over!!!! So join me in making sure our babies are looking cool on the first day of school!
If you would like to volunteer your services send me an e-mail  Theressa at 957rnb.com or call me 497-2000 ext. 232 by August 13, 2010