October 2016 – shannoninkansascity

Derrick Rose’s Problems

I like Derrick Rose. Not as much as I like Lebron. I don’t have a crush on him at all. And I’m not even a Chicago Bulls or New York Knicks fan. I just like Derrick Rose. He seems like a super cool guy to me. He’s the type of cool that only a Black man can be. That type of cool is often replicated but never quite duplicated. He seems like the type of guy your cousin would bring to a family cook out and everyone instantly liked him. If she stopped bringing him around everyone would ask “Whatever happened to your guy that you brought to the cook out?” for years to come.

He’s a Chicago neighborhood that grew up on the rough side of town and became the pride of the old neighborhood. Derrick Rose always seemed natural and down to Earth to me. He was just a simple Chicago boy turned basketball star; no more or less.

Derrick’s career seemed promising at the start but he suffered injury after injury. Some of the injuries caused him to sit out entire or part of more than one season. Poor Derrick Rose couldn’t get a break. There was a time when I thought Rose my be the unluckiest man on the planet. I felt bad for him and I wanted to see him come back and play well.

Rose was recently traded to the New York Knicks and I thought his career may have a chance to rebound. But rape accusations from a former lover made him headline news for something other than his performance as an athlete. I am terribly disappointed in Rose.

There is no real way for him to ever recover from this incident. The parts of the story that are agreed upon by both parties make Derrick Rose look like complete garbage. He claims that he thought he had consent to have sex with the woman because she sent him a text message. I don’t remember what the text said but it did not say come over here and have sex with me. It was something to the affect of “Sure, come by for a visit”. And somehow Rose took that to mean that sex was a sure thing. My advice for all men is to get verbal, objective confirmation of consent before having sex with a woman.

Rose and the woman accusing him of rape were not the only people involved in this sordid tale. Two of Rose’s friends were in on the act too. So superstar Rose and two of his flunkies went to this woman’s house with the intentions of all three of them having sex with her. I didn’t think that was real. Who does that xxxx? Evidently Derrick Rose and his flunkies do.

Where’s the romance, intimacy, friendship, flirtation or sex appeal? That is just trash! One would think that Derrick Rose would have enough romantic offers that he wouldn’t need to share women. His buddies may not get the attention that Derrick does but surely they could develop enough of a personality so they would have to split a bit of sex three ways. Come on guys have some standards. Where is your pride?

Derrick won his court case and he doesn’t have to pay his accuser the boat load of money she was demanding. But his character and career are tarnished in my eyes. When it comes to situations like this I figure you may not exactly be guilty of what you’re being accused of but you probably did something you had no business doing.

I will never see Rose as the super cool guy from Chicago who’s talent and dedication to his sport earned him fame and fortune. From now on I will see him as a sexual deviant that despite being a grown man does not understand what it is to get consent from a woman for sex. Now he’s just blechkk! This latest trial of Derrick Rose makes me wonder if foolishness is the cause of his problems. You blew it Derrick.

My dear Colin Kaepernick

My dear Colin Kaepernick,

I’ve grown to love you so much since NFL pre season 2016. I had heard of you before then but I really took no interest in you. In fact, I found you to be a little annoying. There was a time when you irritated me so bad with all your kaepernicking that I had to unfollow you on Twitter. You and your fans were driving me nuts with that foolishness.

The main reason for my apathy towards you is nothing personal. It’s just that you play for the San Francisco 49ers. And although San Francisco is a lovely city, the 49ers are just not my team. I enjoy calling them the 69ers for fun. The most memorable moments about your Superbowl appearance was Beyoncé’s half time show and the power outage that happened in the third quarter. If it makes you feel any better I don’t give a rip about the Baltimore Ravens either.

But Colin you have shown the world your heart. It’s as big as the sky and it shines like jewels. You, like so many other people in America and around the world have been touched and troubled by the injustice and violence that the legal justice system deals Black Americans. You, like so many others are tired of the killings, the excuses and the lack of accountability when a Black man, woman or child is killed by an agent of our tax funded, democratically elected government. But most of us are nameless, faceless and have no voice or power to challenge our government in any way that can bring about meaningful change.

Colin you could have lived your life in the ivory tower that wealth and fame provide. You could easily ignore the plight of Americans with skin tones similar to yours and sequester yourself among other wealthy celebrities. The problems of average African Americans are not really yours, Cam Newton’s, Odell Beckham’s or Dez Bryant’s problems. But you took an interest in matters concerning Black Americans even though you have absolutely nothing to gain. The people that you are standing up for can’t offer you anything. Your selfless attitude is rare in this world.

When you were asked about your stance on police brutality and the national anthem you spoke your truth. You didn’t back peddle or sugar coat your message. You were direct in everything you said and you never backed down even when people began to threaten your life. Your career is at a crossroads and a lot of sports fans are predicting your demise. But you are standing up for what you believe even though it could impact your career in a negative way. That takes a lot of courage Colin.

You said you weren’t going to stand for the national anthem again until you see change in this country. You seem to be standing by your word. I don’t see a lot of that from people. Most people say and do whatever is convenient and whatever will serve them best in that moment. Your stance shows that you are a man of convictions.

Don’t ever listen to the criticism and vitriol of the naysayers. You have a big heart, a good mind, truthful and you have the courage to stand by your convictions. A football career, material possessions, fame and fortune can be lost or taken in an instant. But your true treasure can never be stolen from you. You are truly a wealthy man. You are in my prayers and you will always be in my heart. Go 49ers!

God’s Timing

I have been very blessed recently. Over the last six months I’ve been blessed with a new car and a new job. I had been a little concerned over the last year or so because of my transportation needs. My last car was a 2005 with about 140,000 miles on it and it had received a few very expensive repairs recently. I knew that I would need a new car in the near future but I didn’t know how I could manage the payments while working as a server in a Mexican restaurant.

I received my first college degree in 1997. I received my second in 2003. I received a masters degree in 2012. Despite my academic accomplishments I have held a string of low wage dead end jobs. I struggled for years to get my foot in the door of a design or marketing career and failed. But last month I got a job in marketing which utilizes my graphic design and writing skills.

It would take me way too long to explain how these blessings came into my life. But I believe that God was in both situations and God’s timing put my in the right places at the right time in order to receive God’s favor. A string of circumstances came together in order to change my life for the better. There were times that I was afraid to make the step forward but I trusted in God and He provided for me.

As I have gotten older I have gained a great appreciation for time. It’s very hard to even grasp the concept of time while you are young because you haven’t seen enough of it pass. But as I live and I have more time behind me I see how God has had His hand on my life.

I am forty one years old and I will celebrate another birthday in February. I have never married or had children. I have a great deal of student loan debt and despite my recent career advancement I still don’t make a great deal of money. Statistically speaking my life is half over and my child bearing years may be over. But I have never been more excited about my future. I am very encouraged right now to read my Bible and be in prayer. I can’t wait to see what God is going to do next.