Dubzeros

Activists Eff Up the Ballet in SF

Politics:

• Dick Cheney shoots someone while quail hunting.

• May Day protests for immigrant rights held across the country (and little known fact is that they are largely youth organized).

• AIG is now under legal fire, so is Tom Delay and Ben Bernanke takes over for Alan Greenspan as chairman of the federal reserve…money/drama/money drama much?

doodad chic

Fashion:

• Mini skirts are back the likes of which we haven’t seen since 60’s mod/gogo wear pair em with a big belt and a pair of ballet flats (which while cute prove to be not supportive enough for me) and you got yourself a boob holster and barely there crotch coverer. Sweet!

• Skinny jeans get skinnier as does their audience. Men start wearing the releasing upon the world MVPL or male visible panty line. Making the perfect foil, along with leggings for the tunic tops that are out sparking the anti leggings movement “LEGGINGS ≠ PANTS”.

• Apparently this is also the year that hipster/boho/pirate chic accessories came about…What does that mean? Thingamagigs and doodads abounds– bracelets and rings and necklaces and scarves are not singular accessories but worn en masse ala Jack Sparrow. Apparently one is definitely not enough and that old fashion adage of “take off the last thing you put on,” is passé.

no clever caption necessary

Other:

•Youtube meet world. World, meet youtube. Commence changing everything and over saturation of interesting “cat” videos to watch.
• Spinach recall 2006.
•Time.com’s list of the top 10 underreported stories notes that a record number of Americans were imprisoned stating that one in every 32 adults were in jail accounting for 7 million people over all.

Al Gore on 30 Rock

Movies:
•DiCaprio is in the Departed & Blood Diamond– BD being one of 2 movies about Africa that are big– and penguins are still hot just now in animated form– Happy Feet and what not.
•American Idol releases Jennifer Hudson who partners with 1/2 of the most powerful couple in Hip-Hop bey, to do Dreamgirls. Sweet an American movie about people of color… Jhud kills it.
• Al Gore takes on environmentalism and movies with an Inconvenient Truth bringing way more attention to going green and appeasing all the film nerds out there with the cinematography. This  personally is interesting because it makes way for many a hilarious cameo on TV shows and the like parodying himself and or the green movement. 

Dungeon Family - Crooked Booty

Music:
• A lot of music remains stupid (read: “Laffy Taffy,” “The Whistle Song,” “Lean With it Rock With it,” “Ms. New Booty” “Smack That,” and anything by Chamillionaire) but Cee-Lo comes back on the scene making way for a new audience not familiar with his solo tips, Goodie Mob or 1st gen dungeon fam – but seriously “Crazy” and Gnarls Barkely aint got shit on his older jaunts. Get with it please.
• Solo jaunts for Fergie, Justin Timberlake & Bey’s latest talk about panties falling down, bringing sexy back and how everything you own is in a box to the left (yeah that was an intentional rhyme).
• And we’re sadly given a chance for prefab girl groups to infect us without our consent with Pussycat dolls short lived success after last year’s I’m so vain hit and Diddy’s release of Danity Kane’s album. There will always be boy-bands and girl groups but… I’m kinda thinking their reign is coming to a close, at least for now.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Dubzeros

2005


I bid adieu to the east coast and headed back to the bay, but damn did a lot of dumb shit go down in Oh-Five.








 

Bush Doesnt Care About Black People

Politics:

• Hurricane Katrina

•The U.S. Supreme Court rules that the death penalty is unconstitutional for folks who committed crimes as minors. I suppose just killing them all off on the streets or letting them rot in prison makes sense then?

• Sandra Day O’Connor retires– Bush nominates a shit load of crappy candidates.

 

"don't call it a comeback!"

Fashion:

• “Embellished” shit. Aka sequins, embroidery doodads and what nots on everything. As a girl with some bigger proportions a lot of it started to make me think it made my sized women look like Vegas signage.

• Volume… also not friendly to women with my kinda curvage. Everything made folks like us look pregnant or bloated for skinny girls a lot of them ended up looking like lollipops. Big on top with sticks for legs.

• Ah, the year that the “big ass bag” came out. You know, the ones that could fit people under 5 feet in them? The ones that really truly have no reason to be that big? Why not just carry a piece of luggage with you? 

 

 

RIP Rp.

Other:

• Disneyland is 50! 

• We loose one of the greatest of all time, Richard Pryor.

• Pluto is reclassified as a moon not a planet blowing every child of the 80’s minds right out of the water… ok all children before kids who were then in school.

 

unhealthy doses of crazy sauce

Movies:

• Drama gets its spot this year with such features as Walk the Line, perhaps a sad final sort of role for the now insane Joaquin Phoenix… and Brokeback Mountain­ – gay cowboys and yet another highly over quoted line, “I wish I knew how to quit…” quoting that damned line. Come on mainstream media. We’ve had enough.

• On the lighter side of things a movie about penguins hits the world’s soft spots and everyone wants to march like them. That, or Morgan Freeman’s narration just seems to please people. It’s MORGAN FRIGGEN FREEMAN after all.

• Crash is released, with a shitton of critical acclaim and for revealing a little kept secret about our society. “OH SHIT! We’re racist?! Who knew?!”

J Valentine Feat. Bailey - I'm Sprung (Bay Area Remix)

Music:

• I move home and discover the bay area’s latest craze. Shame. Hyphy music. Sorry, I do not want to go dumb.

• It’s another year for dance hits. Amerie is telling you about 1 thing, T.I. is talking bout bringing em out, Ciara got like 4 joints out there, Eve & Gwen Stefani remake a Dance Hall hit talking bout if I was a rich girl, and 50 cent is innuendo loaded talking bout candy shops and shit… real winner of a year no?

• The Black Eyed Peas release one of the dumbest albums ever talking bout don’t “Phunk” with my heart and “my humps,” but how would we know that while this ish was dumb… we’d have yet to see the truly dumb dumb DUMB and I don’t mean in the GO dumb sense, but just straight stupid shit coming from Akon and T-Pain who’d just released their first singles. First singles which had in some cases been bay-hyphy-ified and made even worse, if that’s even possible. Yep yep it is.

 

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Dubzeros

2004

looove this pic

Politics:

• Condeleeza takes over for Colin Powell. Never have I ever seen some a meaner stank eye than Ms. Rice’s.

•Kerry V. Bush 2. We all know how that resulted– and we’re therefore only getting two entries for politics in 2004.

 

mr. bently

Fashion:

• Skinny jeans and leggings debut as the go to pants for hipsters, girly girls and others.

• Kanye West/Fonzworth Bentley and others introduce hip hop to the “grown ass man look” and Louis Vuitton goes hip-hop fab.

• The trucker hat of two years ago makes way for hipster chic: tight jeans, “ironic” tshirts and plaid are about to make their mark.

 

Snoop makes Mashed Potatoes

Other:

• Martha Stewart goes to jail. Clip is of no relation but entertaining to say the least.

• Enter Facebook.

• Janet Jackson + Justin Timberlake + Superbowl = exposed boob + FCC panic.

 

georgia on my mind.

Movies:

• Jamie Foxx plays Ray Charles, Hilary Swank plays another masculine[ized] role (to win the next year) this time as a boxer. Gael Garcia Bernal plays Che Guevera.

• Spiderman 2 is released and proves to once again make myself and a good friend want to swing off telephone poles and fly. Is it a great movie? Not necessarily, but it’s great when movies do that to you right?

• Mel Gibson manages to offend jews with one film. Good job Mel. Goooood job.  

 

 

WAHH WAHH

Music:

• THE WORLD IS BLESSED WITH THE GREATEST ARTIST OF ALL TIME KANYEEEZY. (THIS IS SOME BENJAMIN BUTTONS SHIT WHY WONT YOU LET ME BE GREAT BEYONCE HAD ONE OF THE BEST VIDEOS OF THE YEAR). ((Seriously, if you don’t get this… check this shit out… any entry with text should do)).

• 2004 is the year of the club jam. Between getting tipsy and being a freak-a-leek it seems like almost every song has the toxicity to infect even non-fans. Does it mean it’s good music? Not necessarily. But most people just wanna shake what they momma gave them anyway. A lot of one hit wonders had a good year.

Outkast Hey Ya O video Original

• Outkast releases it’s double album Speakerboxx/The Love Below reminding us that even though they’re not rocking it as a duo in the same way they are truly some of the best rappers alive. (TAKE THAT YEEZY).

 

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Dubzeros

2003

Terminator

Politics:

• “Weapons of Mass Destruction”– I always sort of wondered what if we reconsidered and started treating things like oh I don’t know poverty, poor health care, bad educations, unemployment you know… day to day stuff as “WMDs” THEN WHAT?

• The short lived U.S. boycott of “French Fries,” and by boycott I mean that several red blooded patriots still ate them, just called them “Freedom Fries” instead. This was seriously one of the most passive aggressive forms of taking a stance on something I’ve ever seen. I mean REALLY? A) They aren’t French. B) WHAT DOES RENAMING THEM REALLY ACHIEVE? C) :AL:KJSDFKLjasdklajsdfa!

• In a moment that nearly broke my California–loving heart… we recalled Gray Davis (who didn’t really do shit wrong, I think Pete Wilson’s reign just made republicans all kinna messed up in the head) and elected the EM EFFING TERMINATOR instead. Seriously, few things have ever embarrassed me in terms of being from CA, or the Bay but between Schwarzenegger and Hyphy music, I’m really not sure which is worse.

via fashionpolice.net

• Late ‘03 saw the birth of Ugg boots being every goddamn sorority girl’s go to shoes if heels weren’t an option. Living in NY, and during the winter, it sorta made sense, but otherwise… ?!?! I realize they were invented in Australia and were in part related to aviation and surfing but IT AINT THAT COLD nor are you just exiting the surf. Having lived in Hawaii in the spring of 2004 and these bitches were still hot… I really really think there is a time and place and for the most part it is neither the time nor the place for these shoes. I’ll let out a disclaimer though that I think sheering is wonderfully warm and comfortable, but for house shoes folks. HOUSE SHOES.

•Ruffle Skirts… often paired with uggs… ugh, and I don’t mean that to be corny. I mean got damn no way. Ugh.

Big Fish - trailer

Movies:

•If you didn’t know, but some of you do. The movie Big Fish, which came out this year, could have been about my grandfather. My grandfather IS the main character in this movie. And while I could have commented about any of the other million of movies that came out this year I urge you people who are close to me, if you want to understand me better, watch this movie.

• Finding Nemo brought us Ellen Degeneres as a fish with short term memory loss and some of the best lines ever. More relevantly to someone who cares, Pixar masters digitizing water.

• Charlize Theron wins an Oscar for Monster proving yet again that for a pretty girl to be taken seriously in acting she’s either gotta be a vamp or ugly to win.

Other:

• Harley Davison celebrates their 100th anniversary, (relevant in that my Mom’s cousins are bikers and it’s

• We lose Kate “The Great” Hepburn. I made that name up I don’t think anyone actually called her that.

Music:

 • 50 cent, and his mumbling self hit the airwaves with In the Club which becomes the over played song at the club when it’s someone’s birthday. Why it gotta be a birthday to have a reason to party? That never seemed to matter before this song? I also got a little weird about everybody being called shawty…

• Justin Timberlake releases his solo album… and in an effort to try and be the greatest sings, dances, writes songs, plays instruments and is generally cocky which girls swoon over. Personally his only work that really touches me, are his guest appearances on SNL as of late. Quit the whole serious acting/music thing and go join the cast. Take Neil Patrick Harris with you please!!!

Beyoncé;Jay-Z - Crazy In Love

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Dubzeros

2002

Politics:

• A ton of companies including K-mart file bankruptcy. FYI: It started then.

 • Bush 2 continues his plot to bring down terrorists, but passes the No Child Left Behind Act… a law that is deeply connected to why I do the work that I do, and why so many of our kids are failing… what a messed up name for a law.

 • U.S. Hosts 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City.

curses.

Fashion:

• Crocs. The horror. The disgrace. WILL THEY EVER DIE?

• Asymmetry is in. Every girl I know who likes or has a reason to wear club wear is sporting a one shoulder top to the campus night club. Those who don’t really ‘get it’ have their bra straps exposed. I however still rock my favorite indie hip hop folk’s graphic tees.

 • Apparently the whole bohemian ethnic inspired top thing came out this year, shit that you know my family wore often but is now out in stores… gives every white girl I know an opportunity to feel… “natural and connected to,” you know… the struggle or something.

THE WIRE - 100 Greatest Quotes (spoilers)

Other:

• Friendster becomes one of the first of the more modern social networking sites– and will be rendered obsolete by its predecessors.

•American Idol Madness… season 1. Thanks to this I will forever have those random moments where Kelly Clarkson’s “Since You’ve Been Gone” pops into my head to torture me.

• Oprah releases Dr. Phil into the wild for his own show. All that’s provided us with is wonderful parodies.

• Tina Fey, after finishing her 2^nd year as head writer at SNL, and the writing staff win an Emmy for Outstanding Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program, perhaps there is hope for me to do the same some day?

• The beloved “Wire” begins its short lived run on HBO. By short lived I mean 6 seasons wasn’t enough.

hottest unibrow ever

Movies:

• Selma Hayek plays Frida Khalo, Khalo who’s long connection to the Bay Area has never been so sessí…

It frustrates yet fascinates my sister, mother and I who’ve long been fans of her art. Hayek just reminds me of what pretty girls with big chichis can do with themselves. (Draw on a unibrow and suddenly be considered Oscar worthy… though she wasn’t bad in the role.)

• Chicago is released… dancing singing, Renee Zellweger’s  ribs. Catherine Zeta-Jones tears it up.

• Eminem releases 8mile… the movie/rap album about his life. BIG WHOOP. The Dave Chappelle Parody is better “SPAGHETTI SPAGETTI SPAGETTI.” (But we’re not blessed with his show till a year later).

Get Busy

Music:

• Hip Hop starts its whole “Part I and Part II” thanks to Diddy making way for R.Kelly to write a million part song about cheating… awesome.

• 2002 also seemed to be the year for insane hooks that get stuck in your head… Looking at the top 100 billboard singles… I can sing part of at least 59 of the songs attached. Yes they were the top 100 but they were also on the heaviest rotation and over saturated us.

• Sean Paul... brought a dance hall vibe to mainland U.S. and as a result made way for other such island things like the sometimes oft putting reaggeaton. I can say that "Get Busy," did provide for many a hilarious moment watching people to try and shake it like a video girl. And by people I mean EVERYONE.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Dubzeros

2001

I left my beloved San Francisco in the fall, for upstate New York, a vortex where things just weren't quite real– at least not to me.

 

Politics:

• 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11. 9/11.

P.s. This was my second day of classes. Thought I’d have to hitch hike back to the bay. 

By October, when the world had slightly settled I got to go home for a week (damn you private schools for such wonderful things as October break) I decided to pierce my nose (one of the many types of things I do when I’ve been through something ‘big’).

On my way back, airport security asked if the sea salt I had to clean my piercing was actually anthrax. Irritated I said “No, it’s salt do you want me to eat it to prove it?” He said sure. It was a pretty gross mistake on my part but he let me through.

thank you ashton kutcher

Fashion:

• Army Fatigues were in (though they never really seem to stray too far.) And could be found in about 800 different colors. I don’t know I it was some anti-establishment sort of thing with me but I never got into this trend. Maybe it was some new patriotism.

• Pink was no longer taboo for men.

• The appalling revival of trucker hats. From the cliché vintage or found in a goodwill sort to the highly over priced contour trucker hat set.  An ex made me a personalized one. I think I wore it twice… a fact that makes me shiver to admit.

Halle Berry Accepts Oscar for Best Actress: Emotional and Hilarious!

Movies:

• To my chagrin the Lord of the Rings empire began to make its mark. For me that was on a housemate who’d later write her thesis on it and hang a map of middle earth in our living room. Never got it. Probably never will.

•  Ocean’s 11 was re-released. Which seemed to cause a lot of women I know, even ones who didn’t care for him a great deal, to question what is it about Brad Pitt eating?

• Halle Berry gets her Oscar for Monster’s Ball. Big up for women of color, for crying in public and thanking Oprah instead of god.

Other:

• Jack Lemmon passed away, Walter Mathau the year before, ending their grumpy old men franchise.

• A random fact I managed to find that I’m not sure fits neatly into a category- “The tooth whitening industry sees a boom.”

AK: 2001

SW 1970 sumthin

Music:

• Alicia Keys debuts her voice, her piano and those BRAIDS. Cornrows on the comeback hello braids and beads of the past. But be forewarned just cause you got your hair did like AK, does not mean you were meant to sing ‘Falling,’ even if you feel like your personal anthem should be ‘A Woman’s Worth,’ please leave the singing to her.

• Napster shuts down. Again something I did not understand as of yet. But college did introduce me to Kaaza, Audio Galaxy and Limewire especially since we had the bandwith at school to download music. Though remember how long it took to download ONE song?

oh i miss u 3rd gen iPod

Jennifer Lopez - Play

• 2001 in music marked the reign of Ja Rule, J Lo and Ashanti. Actually, I lie. It wasn’t Jlo or Ashanti that dominated… forreal it was Ja. I could barely go ANYWHERE without hearing Always on time, Living it up or his remix of I’m real.  And actually, that’s a lie. Love Don’t cost a thing, I’m real the original, aint it funny, and play were on heavy rotation even in the grocery store too.

And as much as this shit bugged me (my friends and I clowning on the chorus of always on time– all the time, in the campus night club) I will be totally honest in saying that I was absolutely inspired by J.Lo’s hair in her Play video. And went to prom with the curliest mop I possibly could earlier that year. Even snuck some Peacock feathers in it. Yeah it sounds nuts but you know what, I think I looked pretty fly with that.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

 Update: I have a master’s degree on its way to me… some how… eventually. 2 weeks paid vacation from work. Having spent the better part of four months focused and driven to finish my thesis, I feel like I have no direction and no drive. So after a pity party of one yesterday it dawned on me...

In my last stand-up routine in college I joked that all I was qualified to do with my degree was commentary on “American Culture” and for one of those I love the “whatever” shows, and well being that we only have 10 days left in the decade, I figured WHY not?

So here goes, one year a day, five categories per day for the rest of the year. It ain’t necessarily what I <3 but it sure is worth a rant.

Dubzeros

2000

Y2k aside 2000 marked the end of my junior year in HS and start of my senior year making us the 2nd class of the new millennium–  a fact which pissed us off to no end. In the fall of the next year I’d be moving to NY and starting college. But here’s what happened that year that I think is rant worthy.

prop21

Politics:

• Vermont legalizes gay marriage– and in California we pass the “defense of marriage act” which prohibits it – clearly all our granola munching hippies have retried in Vermont.

• We also pass a law known as prop 21 targeting juvenile’s and gang related offenses which in essence turned any three young people dressed alike into a gang– not so convenient given we had a dress code at school and couldn’t walk together in groups of 3 or more from that point on– cause you know a rag tag bunch of kids in white collard shirts and black pants are CLEARLY trouble.

• Bush 2’s first term. (That’s all he’s getting).

Air Max 90s (The ones from my collection)

Fashion:

• Pointy toed heels are in, causing me to sort of lose it as a shoe lover. At 17 I think they look witchy yes witchy.

However, in a HUGE departure from the clunky platform shoes the 90’s had left us with it is at the least a step somewhere. A pointy-toed step somewhere.

• Nike re-releases the Air  ax 90s which I’m deeply pleased about.

• Track suits are in and  while b-boys will b- boys (what’s up Mos Def!) anyone can be throw back hip with these. I cop a red and black original Adidas jacket I find in my dad’s closet that I have a hard time believing he once fit it. Velour even makes its comeback from out your uncle’s wardrobe (cause he thought it’s proximity to velvet made it appropriate for fancy occasions) onto the bods of J-lo and them. It was cool for a minute in that it kept ya warm– but really it just made people look like fuzzy sausages.

"ITS ALREADY BEEN BROUGHT"

Movies:

• Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon makes anyone even slightly involved in martial arts think that all we need to do to learn to fly is take karate lessons, and then we can kick ass like them. That’s all that mattered. We all wanted to kick ass.

• Bring it On bestows us with a few gems of quotes such as: "She puts the 'ass' I 'massive".  And “…this is not a democracy, it's a cheerocracy. I'm sorry, but I'm overruling you.– You are being a cheer-tator…”

It does, however sadly drop a bomb on the way over quoted “BRING IT ON!” phrase it self. Not every event merited a retort challenging your friend to bring it, but damn did it seem that was the go to phrase for a few years. I mean really, what is there to BRING and what are we putting it ON?

Other:

•Mp3s and digital music emerge becoming the go to for music. Having been computer illiterate– being too broke to have the latest (not even knowing what would happen to my world when I started downloading music and using AIM) this was beyond me.

• Tiger Woods achieves the grand slam in golf. Alls I gotta say is “Remember when?”

Supernatural

Music:

Ima try to keep this brief because this could EASILY be all I write about. For what it's worth, R&B and Pop DOMINATED. Clothes were bright red, shiny pleather and rhinestone covered because of the Genuwine's, Puffy's and Britney's all over the scene.

•Christina’s a genie in a bottle and Destiny’s Child wants you to say their name– especially since two of the then members would be no more by the end of the decade. Nsync and the Backstreet Boys tell us it’s gonna be them and what the shape of their heart is.

•Santana, who has always been on heavy rotation in my house, makes his comeback in late 99’ featuring Wyclef, RobThomas, as well as everyone and their mother. But 2000 does not begin without everyone woman being told that “its just like the ocean, under the moon, it’s the same as the emotion that I get from you,” or that “you remind me of a Westside story”.

• The most thrilling single, released however, had a profound impact on our lives. By our I mean two fold, we saw the resurgence of a particular clothing item: and by resurgence I mean we now knew which bitches were wearing them (yeah I said that too). And the other our, is my high school. Small though it was, we were a strange, clever, funny bunch. And 2000 was the year of our first and I mean first ever, junior prom. We’d had a knack for choosing slightly inappropriate themes for dances but a heavy contender for us that year was this single.

Sisqo - Thong Song [UNCENSORED]

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Not really wound per say... just... off? Tired. Light at the end of the tunnel in sight but so far. Holidays looming– yet whatever the opposite of looming is.

Swirly head but sooo happy that the count down to a new year is here. I want every day to be a day to "reset" my life, and they are and they have been and they can be... but 2010 will hopefully mark a new new new... new new new new start.

That said. Something I have only a few words for. In case I never made my self clear, I *heart* sneakers. In peeping thatonedood's latest posts last week or so I thought... "oh snap" (yes I only say oh snap to myself) "my collection is incomplete until I get some J's... I had a pair of Team Jordan's when I was in HS and on the basketball team but I think they had to get tossed. So I started searching... and I came across these... (I can't even remember what site. So for those really intrigued... Google image search is the hyper link).

Jordan's...     Air Jordan's...     High Heeled...    High Heeled Air Jordan's...    Gross.

high heeled j's

 That's it. Nuf' said. COME ONNNNNNNNNNN 2010.

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Please peep my second oldest friend thatonedood's blog.

fresh dls. fresh clips.

he took good care of me in seattle this weekend. last of my 3part vacay.

Ok... one month left yall. ONE MONTH.

not even. i'm tryna be done by 11/20.

but for now, for thatonedood... the mp3 version of wale's live performance of pretty girls on late night with jimmy fallon. if you didn't know i have a very crazy love affair with the roots, and well this is just the ish.

here's the vid...

Wale - Pretty Girls (Jimmy Fallon Live)

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Seriously, can ANYTHING Top this???

The headlines say it all. Here's a select few.

(From the Whitehouse Flickr Page)

• " On Barack Obama's Nobel: Prize for appeasement"
• " Obama's Nobel Prize will Exacerbate His Narcissistic Tendencies"
• " The Last Thing Obama Needs is A Nobel Peace Prize"

• " Obama Says He's 'Humbled' and 'Surprised' by Nobel Prize"
• " Obama: Nobel Peace Prize is 'call to action' "
• " President Obama's Nobel Peace Prize Viewed Positively in 62 Percent of Twitter"

And as if it weren't clearly articulated above:

• " US divided over whether Obama has done enough to merit award" 

Read and post comments | Send to a friend