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PLEASE DON'T ONE-CLICK ME, THAT'S LETTING BLACKPLANET THINK FOR YOU...WRITE TO ME, AND I WILL WRITE BACK!! Hello, BlackPlanet! I will give a brief introduction: I am from Detroit, my wife and I have been together for 25 years. Together, we run a photography and videography business called Digital Memories. I am a soon-to-be-published (hopefully) writer, a local stage actor and recent karaoke addict. Ultimately, we plan to move south to get away from these Michigan winters...or maybe we'll just winter down south and spend the rest of the year here. Anyway, that's a little about me...thanks for taking the time to visit! 9-17-05 A very strange but somehow wonderful thing happened to me today. I am a photographer/videographer. While I was videotaping a wedding, I met a photographer who was from a Michigan resort called Mackinac Island. I mentioned that my mother and father had been there once in 1989 and told me about how beautiful is was, and that I had planned to visit there soon. He mentioned that he was the photographer for the Grand Hotel there until 1991. I told him that my parents never bothered to take pictures of this very scenic resort, but they did have their picture taken at the Grand Hotel. As it turns out, he was the one who took their picture. This is more poignant for me because my mother died soon after that trip...as a matter of fact, this conversation took place on the 15th anniversary of her death...and the picture that that man took was the last picture of my mother and father together. It is amazing that this man traveled for nearly 6 hours to photograph a wedding and meet someone to whom he had unknowingly given a great gift. So many unbelievable things happened at this wedding that I have to consider the opportunity to attend was a blessing in and of itself. HE WORKS IN MYSTERIOUS WAYS!! I want to tell you about one more thing that happened at this same wedding. When I film a wedding, I also take candid still shots for a montage. As the evening was winding down for me (or so I thought), I returned to my table to put away my equipment, and there was a young man and a slightly older woman sitting there. I took out my still camera and convinced them to let me take their picture for the bride and groom`s disc. The young man told me that the woman`s husband would be back to the table soon, and a few seconds later, there he was. After I took his picture, I continued putting my things away, and overheard the woman ask which of the two men sitting with her would dance with her. They both declined despite repeated invitations. Being the social (nosy) person that I am, I spoke up, saying that one of them, especially her husband, should dance with her. They both continually declined, and finally her husband said "why don`t you dance with her?" To me, this was a call-out, so I walked around to her side of the table, offered my hand and escorted her to the dance floor. This gave us an opportunity to talk, and she told me that she and her husband live across the street from the bride and groom, and were invited although they had never met them before. When the dance ended, we went our separate ways, but met out in the driveway. As they walked in the light of a full moon with the sounds of Prince`s "Purple Rain" playing down the long gravel-covered driveway, the husband suddenly takes the wife into his arms and begins to dance with her. This caught her completely by surprise because he is apparently not the overly romantic type. When this dance was over, they began to walk towards home again, when the woman started bouncing to the next song...obviously, she still had a little more bounce in her, but was hesitant to go back inside to dance it off. I convinced them to go back and party a little more, but once they got inside, they went right back to their table and sat. I took the wife by the hand and led her to the bride, and told the bride about the wonderful effect her music had on the husband in the driveway, and how their wedding had given them the excuse to enjoy themselves again. The bride and the wife began talking and I walked away. When I returned just to say goodbye, the wife hugged me and told me that she and the bride "opened a new door" as neighbors, even though they had been neighbors for about two years before this. They left the party with a new feeling of community, and I left feeling as though I was a part of a very special day on many levels. When this older couple has a party of some sort, the new bride and groom will be invited, and maybe they will reach out to their other neighbors as well. You never know about these things. June 25, 2005 I have noticed a lot of pages here on BP open with some comment about who the author of the page does not want writing to them. Now, typically it is women who don`t want married men, homosexual men, ugly men, old men, too-young men, or whatever criteria they use, writing to them. I can understand why they would not want to be propositioned continually, but what about those who just want to say "hi"? "Well, I don`t mean THOSE people" is the usual response, but many of you who put up these verbal fences don`t make that distinction clear, thus making you appear unfriendly and in some cases downright cruel. For those ladies out there who don`t care for the "Wazzup, Ma" and "I need your number so I can give you what YOU need" approach, I understand and no one SHOULD be approached that way, but not everyone should be frightened off. My wife and I simply and respectfully say "hi" and move on, just being friendly...nothing more, and welcome any and all to do the same. Oh, and those of you who feel qualified to judge who is or is not attractive enough to greet you...you are probably too thick-headed to acknowledge this message anyway, so never mind. My point? A lot of people on the Planet are inadvertently being just plain mean. Is your message expressing your view exactly the way you mean for it to be taken? Take a minute to read it as though it was being directed at you. Would you want to be talked to that way? Judged that way? If not, a minor modification may be all it takes to protect your page and get your message across without being unnecessarily hurtful. The whole point of this site is to embrace and encourage, not to insult and exclude. May 1, 2005 Today I was watching a special on the Discovery Channel about a woman who was a member of the rock band "Heart", who was being given all sorts of problems because of her large size. As she put it, she and the other members of "Heart" were unable to achieve their full potential because no one wants to see a fat rock star. She was told that "Heart" is a product to be sold, and you can`t sell a defective product...she was a defect that had to be fixed. Can you believe the nerve that this producer must have had? To tell someone that because they don`t fit their aesthetic sense that something needs to be done about them? I am a bit sensitive about that having grown up fat and being derided by family, so-called friends and strangers alike, and I know that fat carries certain health risks, but there is no reason in the world that being fat should be seen as a "defect" in a person. It is ridiculous to believe that your character and your worth as a person diminish as your waist increases. Put simply, I am a man (and I think a pretty good one)whether you think I am attractive or not, and my worth is not tied to my body. Her solution to the problem was to have the gastric bypass surgery...mine is to basically say "Kiss my double-wide butt if you don`t like fat people!" If you are fat, don`t be ashamed, and don`t feel like you have to change to suit other people. If you are dieting, do it to improve your health...not to please others. This is NOT to say "do not diet"...this is to say "do not diet`cuz people don`t like fat folks." No matter how large you are, you are a worthwhile person and your character, intelligence and integrity are yours forever, regardless of your size. Hold your head up and keep it there!! Just want to share this with you... On December 23, 1982, I went out with a young woman that I had seemingly been waiting for my whole life. We went to a local Greek restaurant, and she ordered a lamb dish. The reason that this is so significant is that apparently she had been so nervous about going out with me that she neglected to eat for two days prior to our date. By the time she got to the restaurant, she was so hungry she didn`t even play that "dainty eater" thing a lot of womenplay. Well, in her haste to get some food, she didn`t really read what she had ordered, which was not a few slices of carved lamb, but a leg of lamb. Our eyes sprung open as the waiter brought it to our table and set it before her. But you know what? My girl was so happy to finally eat that she cleaned that bone!! You didn`t hear me though...she CLEANED that bone! It was white and dry when she finished with it. When I saw that, I knew she was the one for me. This woman, who is now my wife, celebrated the 22nd anniversary of that date with me in `04. We`ve grown older and I`ve grown heavier, but the important part is, we`ve grown. And we`re still here. Update: Aug 4, 2004 Have you ever noticed that people are very loud when they are trying to embarrass youand berate you, and very quiet when they have to admit that they were wrong and must apologize? Just an observation... 
Do me a favor, would you? Before you leave, sign my g-book and let me know you were here. I will respond to all entries. Also, if you add me as a friend, I will do the same for you...just let me know that you have done so. Oh, and just in case you`re wondering about the pic at the bottom of the page...I just happen to really like Komodo Dragons. The largest true lizard on the face of the Earth, the Komodo is roughly 10 feet long and weighs up to 300 lbs when fully grown. It has razor sharp teeth and claws, but its main weapon is its mouth. Because it eats mainly carrion (dead rotting animal flesh), his mouth and saliva carry an incredibly virulent bacteria soup, so deadly that a small bite on the foot is all it takes to bring down a water buffalo. It is not a quick process by any means...the Komodo`s victim dies slowly and agonizingly over the following few days, the bacteria causing lingering illness and finally death. The Komodo will smell the rotting flesh and return for its meal, battling with any other scavengers who might show up to try and snatch some food (we all got cousins who do the same thang)! Yeah, it`s ugly, but every other animal around it respects it. Scientists are now trying to figure out why this poison in their mouths doesn`t affect the Komodo itself...or other Komodos, and to see if they can synthesize a serum to combat the poison based on the Komodo`s immunity to the stuff. Yep, me and the Ol` Girl love us some Komodos...from a distance |
