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The Vision

One of my mentors once told me my greatest strength is my ability to see the vision. I didn’t know what he meant by that at the time but as I watch my life unfold in the way I see it in my mind’s eye, I’m clear.

I never once regretted my decision to quit my very cushy job as a producer for CBS to follow the paper-thin slice of a vision that was embedded deep within me. People called me crazy, dumb, whimsical and naive. I had opposition from family members and friends but I pressed forward believing that I knew I was being forced in a direction beyond logic. I had to follow my instincts at all cost.

Today, all of my sacrifices became worth it when I saw my work on the cover of VIBE magazine. Sure I’ve done TV shows and worked with some big names but there is NOTHING like being in print. Much like when I was a journalist I felt that same rush of adrenaline when I saw what I created. I cried immediately and I don’t cry. I was overwhelmed for more reasons that I can attempt to explain. I can only liken it to what it must be like to hear your song on the radio for the first time. I’m AMPED!

It’s 1:47 AM the eve before another shoot but I can’t sleep. I had to write to immortalize this feeling. I need proof that I felt like this. On the days that are not as sweet I will be able to remind myself to wait…on it.  I haven’t “made it” but I’m well on my way. When Beyonce calls then I will have ARRIVED lol. I can quit after that j/k.

This blog is my diary. I do it when I feel like it and talk about whatever, however I want. Thanks for being a part of my sporadic purging.

Dream-chasers have a special place in my heart because I am you. Start catching dreams not just chasing. I got mine in a headlock!

Be a Visionary.

Mikki Bey is a Los Angeles-based makeup artist who believes in the power of the universe to bring her all the desires of her heart. Fearless, determined and capable – she’s a bad mamajama! She can be reached at mikki@mikkibey.com.

 

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Signs of A Gifted Child

Many a proud mama and papa have deemed their tot advanced or ahead of the game, but most babes are only geniuses in their parents’ eyes. However, some tots actually are branded as gifted. Is yours? There are a few developmental guidelines that often indicate giftedness in children, so here are ten signs that your child may be headed to the head of the class.

  • Retains Information: The term “in one ear and out the other” seems to apply to most children. Those who are a cut above when it comes to intelligence actually retain a wide variety of information and are able to recall it at a later time. An example from the National Association of Gifted Children (NAGC) is: “One six-year-old returned from a trip to the space museum and reproduced an accurate drawing of a space rocket he had seen.”
  • Wide Spectrum of Interests: Gifted kiddos display an interest in a wide variety of topics. They may like dinosaurs one month, space the next month, and so fourth.
  • Writes and Reads Early: If your tot is a smarty pants, she may be able to read and write very early on and without having had any real formal teaching.
  • Is Musically or Artistically Talented: Children who display an unusual talent for music and/or art are often considered gifted. Tots who can draw things to perspective, have perfect pitch, or display any other higher perception of forms of art usually fall into the gifted category.
  • Shows Periods of Intense Concentration: Children are not known for their long attention span, but gifted wee ones are able to have longer periods of intense concentration.
  • Has a Good Memory: Some gifted tots are able to remember things from when they were smaller. For example, a two-year-old may remember and bring up (unprovoked) an occurrence from when he was 18-months.

Source: Lil Sugar

 

 

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Please Support Kelley Williams-Bolar

An Ohio mother of two was sentenced to 10 days in jail and placed on three years probation after sending her kids to a school district in which they did not live. Kelley Williams-Bolar was sentenced by Judge Patricia Cosgrove on Tuesday and will begin serving her sentence immediately. The jury deliberated for seven hours and the courtroom was packed as the sentence was handed down. She was convicted on two counts of tampering with court records after registering her two girls as living with Williams Bolar’s father when they actually lived with her. The family lived in the housing projects in Akron, Ohio, and the father’s address was in nearby Copley Township. Additionally, Williams-Bolar’s father, Edward L. Williams, was charged with a fourth-degree felony of grand theft, in which he and his daughter are charged with defrauding the school system for two years of educational services for their girls. The court determined that sending their children to the wrong school was worth $30,500 in tuition. – Dr. Boyce Watkins
As punishment for doing everything in her power to keep her children safe, Ms. Williams-Bolar, a single mother with no previous criminal record, has been made a felon by Ohio judge Patricia Cosgrove. In addition to jail time, a large fine and probation, Ms. Williams-Bolar’s felony conviction has also robbed her of her future.
“‘Because of the felony conviction, you will not be allowed to get your teaching degree under Ohio law as it stands today. The court’s taking into consideration that is also a punishment that you will have to serve.” – Judge Patricia Cosgrove
Although Ms. Williams-Bolar had nearly completed her education to become a teacher, under Ohio law felons are not permitted to teach. She has been robbed of the opportunity to elevate her life and the lives of her family through her own hard work. She has been handed what equates to a life sentence for attempting to protect her children. In a time of overwhelming economic disadvantage for so many US citizens, are loving single mothers like Williams-Bolar truly the enemy our court system should be making examples of in this way?
Ms. Williams-Bolar’s attorneys are currently preparing for an appeal. Please sign this petition to let Gov. Kasich know that you do not feel that Kelley Williams-Bolar’s punishment appropriately fits her crime, and that you both support and demand a full pardon.
Source: Sickly Cat Online Magazine

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Confessions of a Modern Woman’s Video Vixen Nightmare

Q: In what world is my competition a video girl?

A: In Los Angeles, that’s where.


I hold a degree in Journalism that I earned on TWO full-academic scholarships, I run a successful business, own my car, live within four ways with no co-habitants of any kind, volunteer in my community and YET, I am still reduced to being paired against over-inflated tits and a silicone-produced ass for the attention of a male suitor.

I’m not making this up people! This is really my life. A guy who I have loosely known for a few years recently hit me up. After a few witty exchanges over Twitter, he asked for my number. Inside I was secretly jumping up and down because I had a crush on this lad long ago. He is one of the few guys I have met that I actually wouldn’t change anything about him (except his teeth! That’s major for me. He’s creative, smart, creative, conscious, creative, God-fearing, creative and he loves his momma! Did I mention he’s creative? His art speaks to me. I see a different perspective when I look at what he created. There is nothing more sexy to me than a man that can see simplicity, seemingly nothingness and make it beautiful.  I digress.

After a little “research” I find that he is in a very public “relationship” with a video vixen. WHY IN THE HELL WAS HE ASKING FOR MY NUMBER????  Totally confused. Naturally, I had to look his chick up. Ok she’s bad. I mean like really bad. I tried to find something physically wrong with her for about 15 mins – FAIL. Her face is gorgeous and I don’t just throw that word around. Her body is obviously RIDICULOUS since that’s her chief asset. Now I’m pissed! I felt like I was on candid camera. Was this some kind of a joke? As if I don’t already have my list of insecurities now I am measuring myself against this fantasy of a woman. Problem is, if you live in Michigan that girl is just a fantasy but when you live in LA, that chick is as real as the air you are breathing.

*BACK STORY: I met him through my summer jumpoff (this young fellow that I was using for an ego boost and occasional *clears throat*). My young boo introduced me to this guy for networking purposes since we both work in the industry. We all hung out from time to time that summer but that was it. P.S. I DID NOT SLEEP with the young boy!

This is precisely the type of bs that makes me want to pack up my crap and move to Iowa where “good girls” get wifed by “good guys” THE END! Ok. That’s extreme but, hell, so is this!

A few days after he asked for my number we started chatting again. This time he was quick to get to the point. The invite to watch a movie at his house was not in the least bit tempting especially since it was already past the 11 o’clock hour! Is he crazy? Clearly. I felt a bit of fire rise in my chest. I knew I may be a tad hormonal so I had a ‘woosah’ moment before writing a scathing yet composed response to his follywagness. I told him that grown people don’t watch movies at 11:45 PM! And if he wanted to see me he would need to pick up the phone and ask me out properly but I would not be holding my breath. At that point I was like he must think because me and the young boy had a little fling of sorts that he could be next! Are you kidding me? Furthermore, you want me to be your jumpoff while you wife the video chick? I THINK NOT! Kick Rocks.

Not caring if I ever heard from him again, I wrote a serious of subliminal tweets. He eventually sent a response that was as charming as ever (not surprising since that’s one of the reasons I like him). To which I respond with SILENCE.

Boo I’m over you! What part of the game is this? I am 27 months from being 30 years old. There is no way in hell I would reduce myself to allow this man to use me and discard me all the while courting King magazine’s feature flavor of the month.

For arguments sake, I can’t say that I know with certainty that the young lady in first position is not educated or that she doesn’t have more than a beautiful face and bangin body. But I highly doubt it. If she is anything like her tweets… *crickets*. Even if she had a PH.D does the fact that all her goodies are on display for the world to see not mean anything to men these days? They don’t give a rat’s ass. In the age of Kim K., men are probably desensitized to the much less demure modern woman. Cold game.

 

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Salman Khan: Video Will Reinvent Education

Salman Khan is the founder and faculty of the Khan Academy (www.khanacademy.org)– a not-for-profit organization with the mission of providing a free world-class education to anyone, anywhere.  It now consists of self-paced software and, with over 1 million unique students per month, the most-used educational video repository on the Internet (over 30 million lessons delivered to-date).  All 2000+ video tutorials, covering everything from basic addition to advanced calculus, physics, chemistry and biology, have been made by Salman.

Prior to the Khan Academy, Salman was a senior analyst at a hedge fund and had also worked in technology and venture capital.  He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, an M.Eng and B.S. in electrical engineering and computer science from MIT, and a B.S. in mathematics from MIT.

Salman Khan talks about how and why he created the remarkable Khan Academy, a carefully structured series of educational videos offering complete curricula in math and, now, other subjects. He shows the power of interactive exercises, and calls for teachers to consider flipping the traditional classroom script — give students video lectures to watch at home, and do “homework” in the classroom with the teacher available to help.

Source: TED

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Where Did All the Black Male Teachers Go?

By Leslie T. Fenwick (via Thegrio)

Recently, Education Secretary Arne Duncan announced TEACH, a national campaign to increase the number of African-American and Latino males being prepared as PK-12 classroom teachers. Nearly 40 percent of public school students are African-American or Latino. In many school districts this statistic hovers above 90 percent. Yet, less than 8 percent of the nation’s teachers are African-American and fewer than 4 percent are Hispanic/Latino. In schools inside central cities, 73 percent of teachers are white. In urban schools outside of central cities, 91 percent of public school teachers are white.

Unfortunately, there is a national mythology operating about why the number of African-American teachers, in particular, is so dismally low. The myth goes like this: With desegregation, blacks pursued professions more lucrative than public school teaching. The truth is that massive white-resistance to the desegregation of public schools prompted the firings, demotions and dismissals of legions of highly credentialed and effective black teachers and principals.

In almost all instances, these black educators were replaced by lesser credentialed whites. The fight to decimate the ranks of black principals and teachers leading integrated schools and classrooms was so pervasive that a series of hearings about the displacement of black school principals in desegregated schools was held by the Select Committee on Equal Education Opportunity of the Senate in 1972.

read the entire article at TheGrio.com

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Black Male Graduation Rates and Our Freedom

From NPR:

A report from the Massachusetts-based Schott Foundation paints a bleak picture of how young black men fare in school: fewer than half graduate from high school. And in some states, like New York, the graduation rate is as low as one in four. The foundation’s John Jackson and David Sciarra of the Education Law Center discuss what’s needed to improve educational attainment among African American children.

After listening to their discussion,  it was refreshing to know that the problem isn’t something innate with our boys, and that white males in the same educational predicament produce the same low outcome. We know this – and it forces us to turn a keen eye onto the education system, especially in states where more money can and should be allocated towards the education of our kids – like California. Where do we begin to demand that a change is made to ensure that our young men don’t grow up destined for a life on the streets or in a jail cell?

It takes me back to my first few months living back in Leimert Park. Every day, I see a countless number of black men, between the ages of 21-40, walking the streets during work hours. They all are wearing the same uniform – baggy jeans, long t-shirts and printed hoodies -and they are just walking the street. Not working, not going to school, but standing on street corners looking dead in the eyes. Zombies is what I call them – and I wonder how many of them are the products of our failing educational system. What other reason would explain a strong, healthy man walking up and down the street all day with nothing to do?

What concerns me most is that these statistics have a direct relationship with literacy rates in the black community. How many of our children are making it to high school not reading on grade level? How does this happen? For all that our community had to suffer through in order to gain the freedom to learn how to read, our education system is reverting us right back to slavery. After all, how difficult can it be to enslave a group that isn’t literate? They have no choice but to depend upon the intellect of others.

All of this reminds of Frederick Douglass in his Narrative when he speaks of how the harshness of slavery, and the lack of intellectual stimulation can change a man into a beast – and I think about the zombies that walk around my neighborhood. I think of all the stories I hear from black women about the challenges of finding a suitable mate – and again I see those zombies. How many of these men came into this world with all the hope and potential they could ever imagine, and now find themselves with nothing to do and nowhere to go? How many of them are fathers? In time, what will happen to them?

People, what can we do to ensure our future generations retain the freedom our ancestors fought for?

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Black Is…BRILLIANT

An article about this family was sent to my inbox a few months ago. Since then, I’ve been super curious as to how these children became such braniacs. Turns out, it runs in the family. This family, in spite of their location, gives me hope about the future of our children when properly educated. Far too many statistics support that Black students are underperforming and the focus is usually on the race of the student, not on the educational institutions that are miseducating them. If this family can succeed at this rate, we all can.