Just Because

you start your mediocre lackluster status update with 'That Awkward Moment...' doesn't mean it becomes interesting. The update. or Awkward. The moment.

Please. stop.

Thanks,
That Awkward Moment Preservation Society: Lagos Chapter.

How Can the 99% Occupation Movement Actually Change Things?

Yesterday I was at an amazing action.  The Foreclose on Wall Street West/ Shutdown of Wells Fargo Headquarters in SF (business at that site was paralyzed by protesters for the day). This was organized by a coalition of organizations in the Bay Area including but not limited to Causa Justa Just Cause, Chinese Progressive Association and East Bay Alliance for a Sustainable Economy,
Groups and personalities like Naomi Klein, SF Supervisor and Mayoral Candidate John Avalos,  Brass Liberation Orchestra and Homoeconomixx were around to help fire up the movement with speeches, live music and remixed renditions of Shaggy's 'It wasn't me' with lyrics like "(the) Federal Reserve... were all buck naked banging on the trading room floor".

I went to this action filled with an arm-load of criticism that I will not go into in this post, and a feeling of 'here we go again'.. oh I also had my good ol' camera with me

I left with tears in my eyes, butterflies in my stomach and a bounce in my feet.

Check out the photos I took and please keep reading, because I have a question I need answered

So maybe I'm not as plugged in as I could, and haven't done my research. Although I think what is going on right now in the US is powerful I've been also having this feeling that is typical for me... that of being overwhelmed. stuck. hopeless. What next?

These days I shy away from waxing politics/activism that much and frankly my rhetoric is not sophisticated when it comes to political and social discourse, so I typically save my thoughts to conversations with close friends and my various alter-egos.

What I do mildly well though is try to walk part of the walk.  So that's what I'm asking for.

What do we do? How can we play a part in making ACTUAL change. What are the action items? What are the small and big things we can do? Short & Long term goals. The occupy movement as it stands is not sustainable (in my opinion) so I would like to see some sort of 10 commandment list.... what the 99% can do now to walk the walk.

I've started the list...I need help

1. Take it to the streets and pose for pictures while looking and acting rad. Make sure the News talks about it. Check!
2. Change from a reg corporate Bank to a Credit Union and TWEET about it... getting ready to do that 
3.  ?? 
4. ??
5. ??
6. ??
7. ??
8. ??
9. ??
10. ??

I'm calling all all my organizers, youth, parents, teachers, writers, workers. Let's get this going!

How Facebook Ruined My Life

If I didn't suspect that my mom, family members and possibly impressionable youth that I work with read this blog, this post might have been titled 'Fuck Facebook!'. But as they probably all do it has the above title.

Side note: Between griping about Facebook and Beyonce I can't possibly think of what else to write about. I need to reel it in. Or else by the time I die that's all I'll have to my name.

"Our beloved N, she spent her life hating Facebook and Beyonce."

But in the spirit of my originally intended title I shall now I proceed.

Many or (one) of you may remember my TGFF (Thank God for Facebook) post. Where I described the conflict between members of the TGFF and FGRM Facebook ga a raputa mmadu (Igbo for Facebook will destroy a person). Well I'm pleased to announce to you that the FGRM has now split and a  2^nd generationer: the 'Fuck Facebook Fam' (very hip) has now formed.

Another thing you may need to know is that I'm considering joining this group, although I was one of the original founding members of the TGFF group and aslo the FGRM group as well (don't ask me how, I just got it like that).

You want to know why I am thinking of joining the FFF?

Okay sure I don't have to be on Facebook. I know. I don't know why I still am. I don't really want to go into any of the reasons personally, professionally or otherwise that I am but that's just the case. Using Facebook is like doing every sin. You feel dirty, nasty, you swear never to do it again. The next day, hour okay minute you find yourself doing it again. Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

EVERYTIME Facebook introduces a new 'Privacy' setting method, all they are saying is that they have 'removed' some privacy features that you possibly took comfort in by fooling yourself that you were keeping things private. Yes. There are two ways I could go with this I could go the STIMW (semi-techno-intellectual modern woman) route and actually write down concrete things about what I mean, or I could go the ABG (Angry, not Awkward, Black Girl) route and just ramble about how wack Facebook is.

Basically here's the deal according to an FFF representative that I interviewed the other day.

"Facebook is wack. It will steal your money. Get you fired. Cheat on you. Dump you. Get you arrested. And take all your friends. Everyone will know your business, some business that you don't know they know and some that you didn't even know yourself.

Before you could just hide your page and only add friends if you wanted and only the people you wanted could see things (not really but let's just say). Now as they 'update' their privacy options they take each of those things out one at a time.

So yes what I'm trying to say is, the only way to not have your business out is to leave Facebook Actually that's a lie. It's too late sucker, your business is already out there. It knows where you live and it will come and sleep with your wife and then post the pictures on Facebook and then tag you but hide it from you so that all your friends will see and tumblr tweet it and then you will finally find out and get depressed and then call in sick. But because you checked into 'places' it will know what you're not really sick so it will call your boss and tell your boss that you were not sick but that you were at the mall, so you get fired. And then you can't pay your rent so you get evicted and now you have to crash on your friends couch, you're hungry and broke so you 'borrow' your friends EBT card and get some popeyes and the police finds out and they arrest you. On Friday. And now everyone has tweeted that you're a thief so your friends won't talk to you anymore.

See? I told you Facebook will ruin your life.

So yeah FF!!"

Wow. Well that was a mouthful!

Until next time

N

(Founder TGFF & TGRM and newest inductee of FFF)