Hair Care for My Brothers: I'm Just Saying; Why I Like: Bill Cunningham & Rethinking Genius with Elizabeth Gilbert

I’m Just Saying: Hair Care for My Brothers

If you’ve been reading The Genius Syndicate from the beginning then you know the “I’m Just Saying” segments are my opinions/questions/perspectives/rants and if I offend anyone that is not my intention. But some things just need to be said.

As a black man I think I have had just about every hair style imaginable [except the frohawk…I refuse] and there was NEVER a time in which I felt it unnecessary to take care of my hair. I understand that having more texture is in style now. We got everything from shags, to the mini fro, Mohawk, frohawk, and I could’ve sworn I saw Bobby Valentino with a rat-tail a few months ago. That’s all well and good but please take care [wash, brush and moisturize] your damn hair!!!

We as a people usually have drier and more brittle hair than our counterparts and while others wash the natural oil out of their hair we need to add moisture to ours. Does this mean run out and get a jheri curl? I can’t cosign on that but you need to commit to keeping your hair looking healthy [healthy= clean + moisturized] if you’re going to let it grow. Oh and please don’t make the mistake of thinking just because you got Indian [or whatever else] in your family you don’t have to subscribe to black hair care rituals like greasing the scalp. Get over it bruh. We men don’t have as many grooming responsibilities as women so when we let one thing go unkempt it makes a loud unflattering statement.

I’m just saying.


Why I Like: Bill Cunningham

When I lived in Brooklyn my Sundays were pretty routine. Church in the morning, brunch with friends, stop by the wine store, check out Bill Cunningham’s slide show on NYT.com and have a feast for dinner with my boy Carlos. Well, since living in Chicago I’ve found a church, still need to work on brunch, I get my wine from the grocery store (so convenient), have feasts for dinner with my brother (the future chef) and still catch Bill Cunningham’s slide shows on NYT.com. I’m a creature of habit.



Mr. Cunningham does an amazing job highlighting fashion trends but more importantly he crafts weekly stories based on people’s attire. I think it’s fascinating. The only thing that would make his slide shows a little more gangsta is if your boy was featured in one. Until that happens I’ll just have to settle for checking out the slide shows every Sunday. I ain’t mad. Check out Mr. Cunningham's work [especially the Nov 4, 2008 feature] when you get a chance.


Rethinking Genius with Elizabeth Gilbert

I was strolling through the TED site today [as usual] and found a great little ditty from the TED 2009 get together. Elizabeth Gilbert is a best selling author but unlike other creative types she refuses to be tormented by the pressure that comes with being a successful creative soul. Her liberating take on what it means to “have a genius” and transcending the physical into the beautifully creative supernatural is breathtaking…and funny. Take a twenty-minute break and listen to what Elizabeth has to say. If you’re a creative soul I highly recommend this.




Quote of the Day


“Three words: Black, Muthaf*ckin, President. Hey now.”

-David Allen Grier

Recycle that Cell Phone Bruh; Sip on South Africa's Wines; Foods & Moods and The Flipside Wallet

Recycle that Cell Phone Bruh
Purchasing a new cell phone is so easy isn’t it? So what about your old phone? Where is it? What have you done with it? If you’re like me it is probably in a box somewhere or being used as alarm clock. You don’t want to throw it away but you don’t want to hold on to it forever so what is a tech savvy person supposed to do? Recyle that bad boy.

While watching Current TV I saw a piece about recycling old cell phones and Samsung is heading the initiative. Honestly I didn’t even know you could recycle cell phones but in an age where everything is recycled {christmas gifts, vegetable oil and originality [see Fox Network]} why not have the option to recyle your old phones? Especially since it seems like cell phone lives are getting shorter and shorter anyway {I’m looking right at you Tmobile}.

Its estimated that there are 4 billion cell phones in use today and 25% of them are old or not being used. It doesn’t stop there either because today’s cell phones contain very harmful materials like lead, arsenic and mercury that could make our troubled environment a lot worse.

On Samsung's website where you can print off postage paid labels and mail in your old cell phone to them. They will break the phone down, I mean all the way down, and make sure the entire phone is recycled. In addition to recycling Samsung is launching a line of bio-plastic phones that are made with environmentally safe materials (e.g. corn products). And before you ask, no it doesn’t look, taste or smell like corn.

To find out more about Samsung’s recyclying genius go here.


Sip on South Africa’s Wines
This is my life in beverages: breast milk, cow’s milk, water, fruit juice, soda, kool-aid, fruit juice, hot chocolate, egg nog, beer, more beer, liquor, more liquor, beer again, more liquor then wine.



Ocassionally I still indulge in a dirty vodka martini with extra olives {my friends are probably chuckling right now} but for the most part I’ve been sticking to wine. For me it’s the all purpose alcoholic beverage that offers flavor, aroma and goes with meals as well as parties. Specifically when I think of south african wines I think of living in Brooklyn {Clinton Hill Baby!!!}, walking down to Olivino on Fulton Ave and picking up two bottles of Indaba wine- one bottle of shiraz and one cabernet.

I’m still a novice when it comes to wine but I like what I like and I have been gravitating more to South Africa’s wines. I love me some Indaba but a recent article in the NYT has opened my eyes to more wines from South African that have really put the country on the map.



South Africa has out done themselves with their cabarnets so don’t be surprised when you start to hear more about Stellenbosch’s family of cabernets and {the best value pick} Bon Cap Robinson Cabernet Sauvignon priced at $15 and described “Balanced, earthy and well structured with flavors of fruit and a touch of bacon” that’s right BACON!! Check out the NYT piece and keep an open mind next time you’re shopping for wine. You could be missing out on great flavors and a great bargain.

Foods and Moods
I was combing through About.com again and found something interesting about foods and their link to elevating your moods. Before you rush and say “duh” just hear me out.

Walnuts: “Walnuts have long been thought of as a "brain food" because of their wrinkled, bi-lobed (brain like) appearance. But now we know that walnuts are an excellent source of omega-3 essential fatty acids, a type of fat that's needed for brain cells and mood-lifting neurotransmitters to function properly and possible help some people with depression.”

Didn’t know that did you? Well I sure as hell didn’t. What about this?

Salmon: “In the past few years, research has suggested that vitamin D may increase the levels of serotonin, one of the key neurotransmitters influencing our mood, and that it may help to relieve mood disorders.” Guess what food is high in vitamin D? -- Yep salmon.


For the rest of the list as well as tips on how to incorporate more of these healthy and mood lifting foods check out the article.



The Flipside Wallet: Not Your Pop’s Wallet
Damn that Josh Spear. I’m not hating on him personally just his uncanny ability to make me want shit I didn’t even know existed. Check out the Flipside wallet.



It’s a slick, durable wallet that is just as tougher on protecting your assets as it is on design. The Flipside not only looks good but it prevents you from being a victim of the newest form of identity theft—RFID theft—which is a result of punk ass identity thieves using RFID readers to lift vital information from our credit cards {ding dang shame}. Check out more of the Flipside’s bi-fold functionality and new age appeal in the demo.

Quote of the Day

"If you don't like your job, you don't strike! You just go in every day, and do it really half assed. That's the American way."

-Homer Simpson