The Art of Communication

A while back, I had a reputation of not amwering phone calls. As a matter of fact, I was bad at returning calls, texts, voicemails, the whole bit (as Mr. Cambisios would say) and my friends berated me for it. Why was I so hard to get into contact with? Because one out of every three people I would talk to pissed me off in some way. Communicating with people became my number one source of anger, and I'm not even an angry guy. Now, my phone is only semi-operable, and I hope to be getting a new phone in the next couple of weeks. When I purchase this phone, I want to be able to gain my communication credibility back by answering your calls and texts. But in order for me to do this, all of you must understand 10 simple rules of how not to piss me off, which I have entitled, THE ART OF COMMUNICATION. Enjoy.

Texting
1) Don't text me just saying "hey," "hi," or any variation of this. Not even "hola." I swear to the heavens I will kill you. If you have something to say, say the shit, and let's get on with the convo. If you're flirting with me or something, I'm worth at least a "what's up." If you just wanna talk, the same applies. If you have something to tell me, say, "I have something to tell you." But if you text me "hey," unless you're an extremely attractive girl or one of my best friends, you will get ignored, and possibly lose some respect points in my book.
2) If I say "what's up?" and you hit me with a "nm u," the next time I see you, I'm Kimbo Slice-ing you in the chest. "NM u?" For real? WTF is that? I'm not worth words? I get hit with letters? If I'm taking the time to text you and ask what's up, I probably actually want to know what is going on in your life, and I'm probably not just being superficial. Get your shit together.
3) This is for girls. If you set me up with a "That's what she said" via text message, and expect me not to call you on it, you're dumb. As a matter of fact, if you say anything that could even be misconstrued as sexual, and you expect me not to point it out, you are foolish. I'm a guy; I think about sex every 7 seconds (on average). So if you don't want that to seep into the conversation, end the conversation. I don't need you that badly. I know of plenty of attractive young ladies that are willing to fulfill this certain need. Yes, they are all on the internet, and yes, they're all hotter than you.
4) Guys. Don't hit me with a smiley face. Ever. If you're not gay and flirting with me, or being extremely sarcastic, it has no place in our conversation.
5) Girls. If you hit me with a smiley face, I'm going to assume you want my penis. It's that simple. Ask any guy. You hit us with a smiley, and we get mad hype. Learn this. Understand this.

Calling
1) If you call me, have a subject of conversation. If I wanted to talk to you aimlessly without end, I would text you. Unless you know without a doubt that we are good friends who can just "talk" on the phone for hours, you'd better have some shit to talk about.
2) Girls. If you call me to talk about another guy, I will hang up on you. That type of stuff can either be texted, instant messaged, or dealt with by yourself. When you call me, I am taking time out of my day to put down the controller or the keyboard and only TALK TO YOU. If your response to this is telling me about some other dude you want, get that outta here. (Again, this depends on the friendship factor.)
3) When I don't answer my phone, I either am busy, or don't wanna talk to you. You calling me 80 freaking times in a row won't change either of those facts. Leave a voicemail; that's what they're there for.
4) Texting while you talk on the phone is one of the most obnoxious things possible. I can hear you beating the crap outta the keyboard. It's annoying. If you need to text that badly, say "hang on," or call me back or something. But when I'm in mid-sentence and hear that, I get pissed.
5) When I say "I gotta go," I GOTTA GO. Don't say "One more thing," and then come at me with 80 different things. That's just setting yourself up to get hung up on. I will call you back. I promise. Right now. You have my word. You can quote me.

Lil Wayne... the best rapper alive?

About two weeks ago I was blessed with tickets to see Jay-Z live in concert on his Blue Print III tour. It was awe inspiring just to be in his presence, and it took a second to realize it was really him, the self proclaimed "Best Rapper Alive," on stage. I left the concert exhausted and with ringing ears, pretending to hear but ignoring half of what Ric was saying on the car ride back. This gave me time to think in a pensive state, is Jay-Z really the best rapper alive? Many of his fans think so, but there is another who claims the same title.

Earlier this month, rap icon Lil Wayne was sent to jail for the illegal possession of a handgun. It was a sad day for me personally as I'm a big fan of the guy, so I put on one of my favorite mix-tapes by him, The Drought 3. On one of his tracks, "Dough is what I got," Lil Wayne makes a bold move by rapping over the Jay-Z beat, "Show Me What You Got." He starts by saying "This is a Public Service Announcement," a reference to the Jay-Z song P.S.A., "Little Wayne is the best rapper alive." This poses the question, "is he really?"

So like many, I've been contemplating the question for quite some time. Is it the the blunt-inhaling, dreadlock-rocking Lil Wayne? or is it the Ad-lib shouting, 40 something Jay-Z? I'm not even sure if that is the question, however. Who's to say there isn't a lesser known rapper ready to take down one of these giants (did someone say Lupe?), and even if there is, how could we compare them? Being a "better" rapper is an intangible comparison. Are we to compare their wordplay? their flow? the meaning in their songs? record sales? When it comes down to it, it really is arbitrary to say one is better than the other. When did rap become a competition anyways? It's not as if Lil Wayne shouting that he is the best really means anything anyways when you have people like Soulja Boy claiming the same thing (see the preposterous "2Milli," the title is a reference to his two million followers on twitter, WOW). There is no measurement of comparison between the two, no medal or trophy for the "best." It doesn't matter, so can we all please stop trying to crown a king and learn to take Hip-Hop for what it is? It's music, self expression, spoken poetry, and sometimes its just plain dumb fun. So please Lil Wayne, realize that you sound childish pumping your chest and shouting that out, and Jay-Z... Nevermind I can't say shit to Jay-Z. PEACE.

Omegle/ChatRoulette

Ok so, Daniel decided to talk about facebook, which made me want to talk about facebook. But the man did his thing, so I went to a different direction. We're gonna start this off with a story.
About a year and a half ago, a friend introduced me to a site named Omegle. I go to the site, and I click "chat," and I am confronted by a chat window that says, "You are now chatting with a random stranger, say Hi!" Now what in God's holy name is this? A website where you talk to a stranger for the purposes of talking to a stranger? A girl introduced me to this. A girl. Not only do people visit this site to chat, but they also "make friends." What? Again, this report is from girls. Now, I'm no expert on creepers, but I'm fairly certain you meet a random stranger on a sketchy website and give him your name, he's gonna be choking the chicken to your British Virgin Island pics on facebook the next day. That's just an assumption.
Anyway, I opened up to Omegle as more people realized how creepy it was, and just went there to dick around with other people who were there to dick around. Great time. This whole talking to strangers thing isn't so bad. Enter Chat Roulette.
Now when I heard about Chat Roulette the first couple of times, it was my friend in DC seeing Chuck Brown, and this girl I know seeing a glorified douche from Jersey Shore. So I'm thinking, "This must be a website that celebrities get on to video chat with fans! Cool!" Oh no, I was wrong again. I visit this place, and it's Omegle with a webcam. That's not cool, that's weird. Now instead of the creepy dude masturbating to your pictures, he can see your face! Stupidity. What the hell are you doing? If the dude you see is not a celebrity, hit new game and keep it moving. If you're that sex deprived and a hot dude is what you want, holla at Conover on facebook chat and he'll be sure to oblige you (or hell, me for that matter, I'm here for ya, baby). But be sensible.
Look, I know a good number of y'all use these sites, so I'm not here to dump on you. That job is for Cons. Ladies, if you're having a little sleepover, and you think it's funny to catch a guy shirtless laying down on Chat Roulette, be my guest. Have a laugh. But if you are by yourself at home, bored, there are better things to do then hop on Chat Roulette for the hundreds of guys waiting for you to see them naked. Read a book. Learn to play an instrument. Do some damn homework. Go chat a guy on facebook that you wouldn't normally talk to. But by God don't spend your time on that madness. And if you do, if you're just that bored and can't help it, please don't tell me about it unless it's something cool. I don't wanna hear about how many guys you caught jacking off on Chat Roulette last night.
Disclaimer: This is not meant to harm the business of Chat Roulette or Omegle. Nor is this meant to offend the small population of people who don't see creepy stuff on these sites. Nevertheless, if you're a normal, everyday person who enjoys talking to strangers, consider if you would do it in person; then decide whether to execute your action.
Deuces.

Smh @ Facebook

For my first post I decided to get something of my chest. I hate facebook. Sadly, I am, as all of you are, constantly on facebook. Why? Because, put simply, it is the easiest way to stay in touch with my daily acquaintances as well as all of my old friends. However, despite this wonderful service which facebook provides I still hate it, and here for you are my top 3 most hated things about facebook.

1.) Girls. All of you. Especially the little ones. Before chatting or messaging me, please ask yourself: "Would I do/say this in real Life?" If the answer is no, don't talk to me. I'm tired of girls who have twice as much confidence on facebook as they do in real life (Ric is not). Don't get me wrong, the same can be said for guys out there, but Its not a problem for me. Take the time to have a real conversation with a real person, and if you wouldn't do it face to face, don't do it (unless you are exceptionally sexy/horny).

2.) FAN PAGES. Do I even need to say anything about this? Just because you agree with an idea, or can relate to a given social situation does not mean you are a "fan" of it. To say "I am a fan of Justin Bieber" makes logical sense (sort of). To say "I am a fan of 'I hate it when you are talking to someone and it is like so awkkk'" does not. Also, as I have said before, you will never gain anything, ever, from joining a facebook page. You will not hear the riddle, get the answer you so desperately want to hear, or see the "F***ing hilarious" video that caused half of "Princeton Graduates" to "Not be able to contain their laughter." Its out of control, and frankly nobody cares about what you are a "fan" of.

3.) Fb Chat. It messes up all the time, and it is the main medium through which I am exposed to #1. It is also often serves as an annoying interruption. When I am going about my nightly business (web surfing, hulu, porn, etc.) there is nothing worse than realizing I've left my facebook open and seeing that I've got a message from someone I'd really rather not talk to. It's unnecessary exposure, and I suppose its my own fault, but it just creates an awkward situation. And I hate it. Maybe I should make a fan page for that, but there probably already is.

Texas Ruling Changes US Textbooks

Recently, the Texas State Board of Education decided to change the curriculum of Texas textbooks. They decided that Texan students needed to learn a more enriching version of history, one not clouded with the liberal agenda, and that the students in Texas needed to learn of their conservative roots. Why do I care? Because it just so happens that Texas happens to be a leading state in the textbook industry. The number of books printed for Texas school districts is enormous, and the number makes textbook companies often cater to those students. As a result, American students get textbooks that were made specifically to cover Texas requirements. Again, who cares? Well let's just look at the changes that will be made in the textbooks that our younger siblings, cousins, nephews, and nieces might be reading in the future, and you can decide if you should care or not. (The title links you to the unbiased story, the rest of this post will be my take on this event.)
1) A Reduced Scope of Latino Influence- So Texas, one of the states on the higher end of illegal immigration, decides to try and eradicate the influence of the Hispanic population from their textbooks. They are literally trying to erase Hispanic culture from the history books.
2) A Positive Portrayal of Cold War Era Anticommunism- When I saw this, I read "Let's celebrate McCarthy as an American hero, and forget all the innocent people he had arrested and prosecuted!" That's dumb. There wasn't much positive about the witch hunt that went on in the sixties in the name of capitalism, and I would appreciate it if textbooks showed the truth.
3) A Recommendation to Recognize Country Music As a Great Cultural Movement- I have no problem with this, country music is a great cultural movement. But wait a second...Hip-hop was removed from the same list as a part of the bill. Well that is just some bull. What makes the country music surge more of a cultural movement than hip-hop? Especially when the rise of hip-hop represents the rise of African-American culture after years of subjugation? Hmm.....maybe race has something to do with it? Nah, I'm not touching that one.
Anyway, there are more effects of the ruling, so click on the link, read it, and weigh in on this post via the comments.

Changes

This is more of an update than an official post, but I just wanted to keep you guys aware. First off, we got a name change: The title of the blog is now "Generation 92," and the URL address is now "www.generationninetwo.blogspot.com" I promise these will be the only format changes for now, unless I change my mind. Another change: we now have a new author, and he goes by the name of Daniel Conover. That makes two fresh young minds giving you differing observations on distinct occurrences. Enjoy.
P.S. Don't forget to comment on stuff, this is nothing if not a forum for discussion.

Welcome

Welcome to my blog. Since this is my first post, I don't really have much to say right now, other than thanks for visiting. There's no set schedule right now for posting; I'm just going to post whenever something happens and I want to comment on it. Could be every hour, could be every week. But anyway, thanks for coming, I hope you enjoy.
No, it's not over yet. Since I don't have anything specific to discuss, I guess I'll just give you a couple quick hitters to let you know a few of my pet peeves.
1) I realize that all you little girls really like Nicki Minaj and everything. Yes, she's the "Barbie Chick" and all that, but here's a newsflash: You are not her! When she dresses in a shoestring and talks about handling balls, it makes her money. When you do it, it makes you look like a slut. Unless that's you goal, cuz if so, holla at me. And stop trying to quote her if you don't know how to spell. It's "asbestos," not "asbestest."
2) I just came to the realization just a few days ago that some people don't like Kid Cudi. I hear that's it's because he's not a, and I quote, "street nigga." If this is the case with you, I hate you. No exaggeration. Don't be ignorant. He is one of the most creative and honest artists out today. He does not conform, nor does he try to be something he is not. He is true. If you can't respect that, than I can't respect you.
3) If you want to make your boyfriend/girlfriend look bad, and if you want to tarnish their name, you need to create an elaborate plan involving school-wide humiliation. If you want to provide entertainment for all of your friends, and potentially embarrass yourself, air out the dirty laundry in the relationship via Facebook. We all love it. But by God, you can't combine the two, because it WILL NOT work.