Dinner with Sidney Poitier!

Ok, so NO, I have NOT read "The Measure of a Man", and I feel like I'm missing out now.

And I think Oprah wants a piece of Sidney.

I'm just sayin'- she seems pretty into him.

Pretty amazing that SIDNEY POITIER couldn't read- it means we can ALL learn something and then take it to a high degree.

From illiterate to Academy Award winning actor to author.

Inspiring.

Kid as Parents...

What kind of opinion can I have about this other than- whoa.

Sounds tough.

I imagine that sometimes life just deals you some cards;
The girl who kept her family together made that choice, and did what she had to do.

The boy taking care of his deaf mother might have a few issues when he grows up.
I'm sorry, but it seemed like maybe his mother could get by without him a little better than she does.

It just seemed like that to me.

The drugged out mom looked like she was still affected, so let me say this:

METH WILL MESS YOU UP.

3 years sober, and the poor woman couldn't sit still or talk right.

She is affected FOR LIFE.

Every few years there's a "new drug" that starts out just "cool", and then oops- this is actually harmful, and then lives get destroyed- I guess it's those "early adopters" that find out before the rest of us.

Get the hint- so far, NONE of them works long-term!

MAKE OVER MADNESS!!!

It's no secret- I LOVE these types of shows, and I'm DAMN proud of it.

Anything that can make women want to look better is a help to ALL of us!

That second woman was absolutely gorgeous, and I hope she has enough courage to model; her face is beautiful, and she has the cheekbones that buy BEACH HOMES for plastic surgeons!

That's all I have to say!

Denzel Washington' book- all about mentors

This episode is all about mentors and people who intervene to help young people who need help. It was really inspiring, but first, let me tell you one thing:

Yes, I'm JEALOUS of Denzel Washington.

It's not that I want to take anything from him- that's different- I think it's really just the SCREAMING women, freaking out and crying... it seems neat-o!

Oh yeah- and the career; but I'm not dead yet, right?

So evidently, we should be praying for "our children and our children's children."

That works? Why didn't someone tell my grandparents?

But that's not what this episode was really about.

It's about the answer to the question:

How am I helping?
How can I affect the future?
Can I affect it by affecting the next generation?

So, the next time I see a kid (and aren't we ALL still kids?)- I'm going to encourage them as much as I can-

I hope you can do the same!

My stomach is a walnut, my brain is a keg....

"Addiction transfer"

Trading one addiction for another... ain't that a bitch?

The first woman addicted to being fat, and now she's addicted to being drunk

(and apparently kissing all her girlfriends!).

She never got over some abuse in her past, and so food was helping her cope.

So- here's where MY mind goes- If there are SO many addictions, ie: Food, alcohol, drugs, sex, videogames, tv, shopping, etc.

Do we actually have any REAL motivations?

I mean, do we do EVERYTHING to cover up something else?

I hear that humans are always either moving TOWARDS something, or AWAY from something. If addictions are all in avoidance of feeling bad, then where are our addictions for feeling good?

Are they the "good ones" like going to the gym, or eating NON-addictively?

I doubt it. I think they are probably bad too.

So, it seems like your only choice is to live CONSCIOUSLY, and make your choices FOR yourself.

But then you gotta SEE when your subconscious is making choices that you don't like, and then maybe DECIDE to get addicted to things you DO want.

So, here's to my addiction to getting RICH!!!

Parents who can't say no...

That first little girl learned to yell at her mother because her daddy does it.

Period.

However, I guess the responsibility for that lies with her, right?

Great.

I'm all for parents giving their kids stuff if they earn it somehow- and that means chores, grades, or helping them with 1/2 of the money for somethings they want.

Dr. Robin was saying that evidently the mother was filling the void with the things, and so she was over-compensating by giving them things...

Someone tell my folks that they didn't have enough guilt!

And there DOES come an age where your parents are the LAST thing kids want, and they would GLADLY trade them away for an ipod!

But of course, you wanna watch what you're teaching them, right?

I think a lot of this issue comes from no one knowing what money is, and how we get it. When I first got out of college, I had NO IDEA what to do with money, and it seemed like I was doing EVERYTHING I could to be broke. I don't think we teach our kids about money, and because they have no idea, ramifications can't be seen until they're parents, and then the cycle starts all over again.

Also, it spreads the idea of dependency.

With our society not really maturing until 30 (there are many tv shows and movies about this idea now), it's just become normal. And although it seems like we should be blaming "the parents" for not teaching their kids about taking care of themselves, but if the parents don't know how to either, it seems like a lost cause.

SO I HAVE SPOKEN!!!

Gay Wives break out!

Great, so women who discover they are gay are now breaking free of their marriages, and going off to be with women.

Good for them.

However, had this Oprah ben about gay MEN who leave their wives, I'm not so sure that the audience would have been so supportive. I think FAR more people would have been sympathetic towards the wives who lost their husbands, and I think that sucks.

Even Oprah talked about the "Down-Low" society like it was a pariah, and those are men who are NOT leaving their wives, or for that matter not even wanting to be gay- they just want some hassle-free sex!

So I've heard....

So is gay something you DO, or something you ARE?

YOU are the only one who can decide whether you ARE gay or not, and I'm glad that they said that. Many women can go and play around with other women without being stamped "GAY", but it just doesn't work like that with men.

If you're a man and you DO anything Gay, then you ARE Gay.

I've said it before, and I'll say it again- in the debate over whether or not Homosexuality is Nature or Nurture, the entire question is just looking to assign BLAME.

If it's Nurture, and you "decide" to be Gay, then we can blame the person, and string him up for his or her "immorality"

If it's Nature, and you're "Born like that", then we can blame God, and no one would DARE say God did something wrong, so we'd have to figure it out from there. It does, however open the door for pedophiles to say they are "born like that", or whoever doing whatever.

HOWEVER, if we just decided that there was nothing wrong with being gay to begin with, then there'd be no reason to ask, and furthermore, people would be FREE to BE what they wanted and DO what they wanted- as long as no one else is hurt-

Which is what this country is supposed to be about anyway.

Older women talking about getting older...

I was prepared to be BORED TO DEATH with this episode:

"Oh, women are so smarta,d aging is easy"

But instead, we got some FRANK discussions, some GREAT Jokes from Nora Ephron, and watching Oprah be the YOUNG woman!

Diahann Carol's care-free attitude was great to watch- she even had the GUTS to take OFF the earrings that Oprah gave her, AND say that she BELIEVED in plastic surgery.

Now THAT'S guts! To say that you believe in plastic surgery on OPRAH? GUTS baby!

And Gina Davis.... hmm.. the last time she was there, they were celebrating the "REVOLUTIONARY" show- "Commander-in-chief". WHAT A BOMB!!! I notice that no one even MENTIONED it!

Hey look guys, I'm glad I saw this episode, if only so that I know that when my woman starts getting older, I can say "Hey- I watched that Oprah episode!"

Resilient people!

"I've never met a kid with more desire"

Isiah scratched and clawed his way to NFL stardom, and on the day of the big game,
His mother dies.

But then he goes to Harvard, and is assigned #39. Then one day he's reading Isiah :49, and he finds his mother's picture with a Harvard sweatshirt on!

Whooaaaaaaaaaaa! He made a poster, and put it above his bed: "Let no one out work you today"

I just put a poster up over my bed, but now I'm starting to think it's maybe too weak.

Maybe something like "Get up you lazy piece of crap, and prove me wrong!!"

Ok, so then Isiah's dad who has been trying to make up for his mistakes in the past, won his son's respect. That was cool, and then being super-proud of his son while trying to keep his cry in was a little too much for me... I lost it, then laughed at myself.

Then came Jeff- drug dealer convict turned chef:
"It felt good to be somebody"

Now I admit, he had to be something absolutely special to get out of prison and CHANGE.
So many people go in after a mistake, and then learn NOTHING but prison life and crime.

I really want him to be more famous, and be more of an example- our recidivist rate is ridiculous, and I feel like it doesn't have to be.

He said he was CRAVING praise and appreciation, and when he got it IN PRISON for cooking, then he wanted to get better at that. I wonder what might have happened if he got praise for other things? What about if we were more of a PRAISING society than a punishing one?

Then Lori Johnson- who lost her baby son and husband in a plane crash. She struck me when she said:

"Either I could look at my life and think about what was TAKEN AWAY from me, or look at what was GIVEN to me" and then..

"Why not me? Why should suffering happen to everyone else?"

That takes some AMAZING courage to say "That was great THEN, and now I appreciate those memories".

Whereas I admire it- I'd really rather do without needing THAT much courage!

Then Rhonda Britton told us she had to MAKE A DECISION about who she wanted to be after seeing her father kill her mom and then himself.

She maybe was a little too preachy for me, and a little too eager to knock people over the head with her decision, but good for her. I'm sure there's a lot to learn from her.

Chris Rock, Fantasia, BOTH on Planet Earth!

I have a prediction:

"I think I love my wife" will NOT be funny.

Chris Rock is brilliant, and so insightful, but I think this movie will be a regurgitation of his stand-up, but without his delivery.

I hope I'm wrong.

But I doubt I'll be at the theatres to decide.

Cute girls though: "Look Daddy, look!" Am I going to be a soft daddy too?

Fantasia- Listen folks, this is a BIG sign for us actors-

If you wanna be on Broadway, YOU'D BETTER GET FAMOUS.

I'll write about that in my personal blog.

As for Planet Earth- I think it'll be awesome- I wanna see a pack of lions take down an elephant!