Please, please, dont go....R.I.P. James Brown 1933~2006

..."During his career, Brown adopted the nicknames "The Hardest Working Man in Show Business," "Mr. Dynamite," "Soul Brother No. 1" and "the Minister of Super Heavy Funk."






BBC NEWS
Public burial for soul star Brown
A public funeral service for soul star James Brown, who died on Christmas Day, will be held this weekend in Georgia.

The 73-year-old "Godfather of Soul" will lie in state at New York's Apollo Theatre on Thursday.

The singer made his debut at the venue, and friend Al Sharpton said the queues outside were "his greatest thrill".

Meanwhile director Spike Lee is to make a film about the late US star, Variety reported, with Brown having approved the use of his music on the soundtrack.

I couldn't even begin to describe it, to walk around his house and he not be there
Reverend Al Sharpton

The project is being overseen by Brian Grazer, the Oscar-winning producer of A Beautiful Mind, with production likely to begin in 2008.

Two posthumous films about singers Ray Charles and Johnny Cash - Ray and Walk The Line - have reaped awards in recent years.

'Disbelief'

Brown's public funeral is due to take place on Saturday at 1300 local time (1800 GMT) in a 8,500-seat arena bearing his name in the city of Augusta.

The ceremony is expected to draw a significant number of figures from the entertainment industry.

Reverend Sharpton, who will conduct the service, said he felt disbelief, sadness and pride after seeing Brown's body at a funeral home.

"I couldn't even begin to describe it, to walk around his house and he not be there," he said.

A separate, private service for family and friends will be held a day earlier, on Friday, at an unspecified location.

'Going away'

Brown died early on Monday from heart failure, less than 48 hours after being taken to hospital with pneumonia.

He also had diabetes and prostate cancer, which was in remission.

He was a difficult man to live with, but he was a great man
Tomi Rae Hynie
James Brown's partner

Shortly before he died, Brown had described how he was "going away tonight", his friend Charles Bobbit said.

"I didn't want to believe him," Mr Bobbit added, saying that a few minutes later, Brown sighed quietly, closed his eyes and died.

Meanwhille Brown's lawyer has claimed that the late star and his partner, Tomi Rae Hynie, never legally married, meaning that Ms Hynie was locked out of his home in South Carolina while "appropriate protocol was followed".

Ms Hynie, who is the mother of Brown's five-year-old son, found the gates to the singer's home padlocked and she was not allowed to enter.

"It's not a reflection on her as an individual," lawyer Buddy Dallas told the Associated Press.

Ms Hynie was already married at the time of her wedding to Brown, he added.

Even though she later annulled the earlier marriage, he claimed another ceremony was never arranged.

But Ms Hynie has argued that she had a legal right to live in the house and held documentation proving that the couple's marriage was legal.

"He was a difficult man to live with, but he was a great man," she said. "I was the only one who could handle James."
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/entertainment/6211589.stm

Published: 2006/12/27 10:24:11 GMT

© BBC MMVI

















...SAdly


Mr. Brooks

Street Works~ Goons Omg Crew

Uncut
In A Rut
Jail Brek
Jail Bail




Brooks

Dread Serious

So, I recently decided that after about 15 years of envy for anyone with dreads that I would once again go for it...In that 15 years I kinda built a visual reputation with my drawings, you could say that ive created clues that ive used to inform the viewer that under certain circumstances that the following combination of physical characteristics indicates that this that they see is in fact a self portrait:(moles that are kitty corner on my face, glasses,the CURLY HAIR, and that oh so surprised wrinkled brow)...
Let the demonstration begin:












With these given examples, I was thinking about how this hair change then changes how dramatically my self portraits become...Has the curly "kramer"mop become me?...or have I become it?...I have been told virtually every time I get a haircut that my hairstyle is/Has essentially become my default trademark, which I always shrugged off as pointless and meaningless, maybe some of my friends were on to something?
..Ill post the first dread serious portrait that I produce, Im super interested to see that....

A few more examples...










..Worse case scenario, I will have some new inspiration and brand new task trying to learn to draw my new natty self...stay tuned

Images ~Hale Woodruff

Artist Hale Woodruff...




"Woodruff was a founding member of Spiral, a group of over a dozen African-American artists who joined together in New York City in 1962 to explore their common cultural experiences as black artists. He proposed the name to suggest the group's need to reach out into broader circles. Woodruff was promoted to professor of education at New York University in 1957, and in 1967, the university honored him with a retrospective exhibition of his paintings. During that time (1966), He showed slides of his Amistad murals in Sierra Leone to descendants of the mutineers who made African and American history."



Amistad Mural


"View of Atlanta" Woodcut


"The Lynching" Woodcut




text was taken from http://www.aaregistry.com/african_american_history/1101/Five_decades_of_greatness_Hale_Woodruff


Brooks

~Saturday studio fun

Brooks

So, I gots my hair did?

This simple goes to show that nothing gets folks talkin like a man changin his hair...I had a woman from work twist my hair into small twist, order for me to get dreadlocks...Im excited since its been like 14-15 years since i last had dreads...I heard things like "you got good hair","That works on...YOU", I finally can say that "I got my hair did"..and I thinks I DID alright...I got called Kriss Kross and Bone Thugs amongst other things in jest....



THE INSPIRATION




THE COMPARISONS














Brooks

Daily quote 1

A poem written for me by a friend of mine in 2005...I keep it on my fridge
as a constant reminder , a lil daily affirmation...



Seven

compulsary days

a week

all of them

creation

and his work

is still not done

- Liat Mayer


Brooks

Images ~Henry Ossawa Tanner

Im a firm believer in the power of positive influences, I had some wonderful cultural influences in my home , First and foremost my father, who instilled in me a real sense of my self and a strong male role model....There could of been a few images present, that under speculation would have changed me dramatically...heres the first of many......


Henry Ossawa Tanner's: The Banjo Lesson






The son of a minister in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, Henry Ossawa Tanner was raised in an affluent, well educated African-American family. Although reluctant at first, Tanner's parents eventually responded to their son's unflagging desire to pursue an artistic career and encouraged his ambitions. In 1879, Tanner enrolled at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, where he joined Thomas Eakins's coterie. Tanner moved to Atlanta in 1889 in an unsuccessful attempt to support himself as an artist and instructor among prosperous middle class African-Americans. Bishop and Mrs. Joseph C. Hartzell arranged for Tanner's first solo exhibition, the proceeds from which enabled the struggling artist to move to Paris in 1891. Illness brought him back to the United States in 1893, and it was at this point in his career that Tanner turned his attention to genre subjects of his own race.

In 1893 most American artists painted African-American subjects either as grotesque caricatures or sentimental figures of rural poverty. Henry Ossawa Tanner, who sought to represent black subjects with dignity, wrote: "Many of the artists who have represented Negro life have seen only the comic, the ludicrous side of it, and have lacked sympathy with and appreciation for the warm big heart that dwells within such a rough exterior." The banjo had become a symbol of derision, and caricatures of insipid, smiling African-Americans strumming the instrument were a cliche. In The Banjo Lesson, Tanner tackles this stereotype head on, portraying a man teaching his young protege to play the instrument - the large body of the older man lovingly envelops the boy as he patiently instructs him. If popular nineteenth-century imagery of the African-American male had divested him of authority and leadership, then Tanner in The Banjo Lesson recreated him in the role of father, mentor, and sage. The Banjo Lesson is about sharing knowledge and passing on wisdom.

The exposition-sized canvas was accepted into the Paris Salon of 1894. That year it was given by Robert Ogden of Philadelphia to Hampton Institute near Norfolk, Virginia, one of the first and most prestigious black colleges founded shortly after Emancipation. Hampton lent it the next year to Atlanta's Cotton States and International Exposition of 1895, where it hung in the Negro Building. Contemporary critics largely ignored the work. Tanner painted another African American genre subject in 1894, The Thankful Poor, but then abandoned subjects of his own race in favor of biblical themes. When Tanner returned to Paris in 1895, he established a reputation as a salon artist and religious painter but never again painted genre subjects of African-Americans.



Henry Ossawa Tanner's: The Thankful Poor




text was taken from.."http://www.artchive.com/artchive/T/tanner.html"
Mr. Brooks

Chicago fun fact 1

WELCOME TO CHICAGO....FOOL!

This starts on the basis that I thoroughly believe that Chicago is the best city and everytime I find out a interesting fact I have to share....So, with that said.....One of the cities worst and once most infamous Housing projects,Cabrini Green,was actually named after Americas First saint Mother Cabrini (Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini)...How different saying or even thinking about Cabrini Green feels, knowing a Saint helped build orphanages here and then went on to be named after it....I wonder what she would think of the plight in the projects?

"...Mother Cabrini was not a strong person physically, but she had a great inner strength. She had an unbending belief and trust in God. Throughout her life and in all her many undertakings, she always knew that God would provide for her and the many schools, hospitals, orphanages, and missions which she founded.

In 1909 Mother Cabrini became an American citizen. Mother Cabrini died in Chicago on December 22, 1917. Her remains are laid to rest in Mother Cabrini High School at 701 Fort Washington Avenue New York, New York. It is now a place of pilgrimage.

Mother Cabrini was beatified in 1938 and canonized a saint in 1946.

During her life, Saint Frances Cabrini founded sixty-seven schools, hospitals, orphanages, and missions, one for every year in her life."

Brooks

Land of the lost comments

~Sometimes disclaimers or instructions are ignored....I like to cherish the comments people make on my default pics/other pics...Im always changing my default pic, it stays fresh, and hopefully interesting...heres a few precious comments Ive managed to save.....


I love erin...shes a multiple offender...

and here...


One from Mr. Ivan


and lastly, a special comment from my supercrush Lady Miss Kier From Supergroup DEE LITE...i was honored....haha




with that said thanks again to everyone who bothers to comment, its appreciated....
Later
Mr. Brooks

Cripes sake almighty?

... I got a chance today to hear some great Midwestern Dialect..in the form of...
The word CRANS and SCOOCH...who can tell me what those mean??

And my personal favorite...BUBBLER...aka Water Fountain







Wisconsin Dictionary

Before anyone can graduate from a Wisconsin High School
they must be able to speak Wisconsinese. This primer is used by all students to help them prepare for an examination.

INTRODUCTION
"Ain't dis da trut"...RS'DA WISCONSIN DICTIONARY
Hey dere! C'meer once you gots to read dis couple-two-three words on how ta talk likeyer from Skahnsin, hey. It's a humdinger! Sit down witch'er brat an' brewski in yerblaze-orange and, cripes sake, in the spirit of Bart and Vince, take a gander, yahhey?


1. AIN-A-HEY: placed at the end of a profound statement, as in "isn't it?"

2. BART: a Green Bay institution who doesn't need a last name; see VINCE

3. BELIEVE-YOU-ME: attached to the beginning or end of a statement and makes it more credible, as in "really!"

4. BLAZE ORANGE: what deer hunters and cold-weather Packer fans wear at Lambeau Field. Also a popular color for jail uniforms.

5. BORN IN A BARN?: a sarcastic question which usually means you left the door open or could not correctly differentiate between an alewive and a 'schmelt'.

6. BORROW: used in place of lend, as in "Could youse borrow me a couple two-three bucks, yahhey?"

7. BRAT: a sausage; a Wisconsin tailgate favorite; doesn't have anything to do with a spoiled kid.

8. BUBBLER: to the rest of the world outside Wisconsin's borders it is known as a drinking fountain..

9. BUDGE: to merge without permission; cut in; as in "Don't you budge in line for a brat. I was here first!"

10. BY: to; near, as in "Let's go by One Eyed Jack's" or "She'll come by da house tonight."
11. CHEDDARHEAD: someone from Wisconsin; see CHEESEHEAD

12. CHEESEHEAD: someone from Wisconsin; see CHEDDARHEAD.

13. CHEESE CURD: small pieces of fresh cheese that squeak when you bite into them.

14. COMEER ONCE: a request for the presence of another Cheddarhead.

15. COUPLE-TWO-THREE: more than one; as in "Delmer and I drank a couple-two-three beers."

16. CRIPES: a Wisconsin expletive.

17. CRIPES SAKE: a mild Wisconsin expletive.

18. CRIPES SAKE ALMIGHTY: a wild Wisconsin expletive. ..

19. DA: substitute for words beginning with "TH", as in "Da guy over dere in da Bears shirt dere".

20. DAVENPORT: what your mom called 'the sofa'; a couch.

21. FAIR-TA-MIDDLIN: not bad or great; just "O.K."..

22. FISH FRY: a Friday night dining ritual in Wisconsin..

23. FLEET FARM: a Cheddarhead's answer to Bloomingdales.

24. FROZEN TUNDRA: Lambeau Field

25. GEEEZ: another Wisconsin expletive.

26. GOAHEAD: proceed, as in "Goahead and back up your car dere."

27. GOTS: used in place of "have"; as in, "I gots my tickets to watch da Packers play on da Frozen Tundra."

28. GOL-DURN: another Wisconsin expletive

29. HEY: placed at the beginning or end of phrases to emphasis, as in,"Hey, how 'bout dem Packers?" or "How's about dem Packers, hey!"

30. HOWS BY YOU: a greeting; the same as, "How's everything?".

31. HUMDINGER: a beauty; as in "Dat croppy youse cought up-nort is a real humdinger."
32. JOHN DEERE: a Cheddarhead's other vehicle.

33. LEAKER: one who lacks the mental or physical stamina to continue partying.

34. M'WAHKEE: Wisconsin's largest city; located just down the lake from T'Rivers and Man'twoc.

35. N-SO: a word inserted at the end of a statement; (sometime pronounced as AIN-SO); used as a substitute for "Isn't that right?" or "Correct?"

36. OH, YAH: depending on emphasis, it's either used as acknowledgment (as in "That's correct!") or skepticism ("That's bull!")

37. PERT-NEER: (sometimes pronounced "PRET-NEAR") in close proximity; just about.

38. POLKA: the national dance of Wisconsin.

44. SKEETER: Wisconsin state bird

39. RUBBERS: protection for your shoes; also known as "G'loshes".

40. SKAHNSIN: the state where Cheeseheads are from.

41. SCHMEAR: a card game; also a term used when someone gets beat in a game of Sheepshead. ( Note )

42. SHEEPSHEAD: another card game.

43. SIDE-BY-EACH: used instead of "next to each other.".

45. START WIT ME LAST: to forfeit your turn.

46. STOP-AND-GO LIGHTS: what everyone else refers to as "traffic signals".

47. UFF-DAH: (from the untranslatable Norwegian phrase); meaning varies with
severity of incident, from "Oops" to "Criminey" to words following" Oh-!" often said when you make a really big "boo-boo" and are "deep doggy-doo".

49. WHEREABOUTS: locality; proximity, as in "Whereabouts are youse guys from?"

50. UP NORT: where Wisconsinites go on vacation.

51. UPSIDE-RIGHT: rightside up..

52. VINCE: the other Green Bay icon who doesn't need a last name for instant recognition; see BART. Recently "Brett" and "Reggie" were also added to this category.

53. WIH-SKON'-TSUN: the way you can tell the speaker is not a real Wisconsinite.

54. YAHHEY: affirmative, but can be added to reinforce a request.

55. YAH-SURE-YOU-BETCHA: yes, you are correct.

56. YOU-BETCHA: affirmative, as in "Yahhey."

57. YOUSE: (var. "Yoose") pronoun, second person plural.

58. YOOPER: someone from even further up-nort' than you. The UP, the Upper Peninsula of Michigan.

59. UNTHAW: to defrost or thaw.

Idol maker, Idol Breaker Extraordinaires

Disclaimer:I am not interested in converting or swaying anyone in a religious fashion, I am personally intrested in Iconoclastic behavior as it relates to World History...
...I had the pleasure of seeing one of these during a trip to Rome in 2000.....




(taken from Suzar website)


"The Black Madonnas originally all had Africoid features before most of them were destroyed by iconoclasts. When they were replaced, the artists retained the dark skin color but, not being familiar with real Afrikans, gave European features to the paintings. In cases where originals have survived, you may witness Africoid features on Mary and her child Jesus, such as the Black Madonna of Nuria, Spain ..called "the Queen of the Pyrenees." Russia's remarkable legacy of Black Madonnas and other Christian icons of dark skin is evidenced in the book, Russian Icons by Vladimir Ivanov, including the feature story of the Spring 1994 issue of Russian Life magazine, graced with a Black Madonna on its cover."




Brooks B Golden...are my only instructions

Oh my Stomach

So today,i was being hoaxed my local news to stay in and waste my whole day watchin the stupid news..tellin me every half hour about the snow..blah,blah,blah...well, i got outta the house today to spend a great amount of time in the studio workin on some new artwork...




After leavin the studio to have tea w/ a friend I found out I was invited to show some artwork with a fellow artist named Stomache...he's a great chicago street artist,nice fellow and is good at what he does (making drawings of excellent zombies on stickers)..either way, we are gonna show some paintings and other visual anarchy together at an undisclosed location...ill let ya know when its confirmed..for sure....
..its gonna be plenty fun, I cant wait!

Stomache




Brooks Golden




Stomache

Is 105 > 82?

...I was gonna post this yesterday as a half-blog, but here it is as today's thought for the day...I enjoy seeing that someone anyone has not only visited yer profile, maybe even commented or left a personal message...In this way I am not different....If I could just get the rest of you to comment, we'd really have a great set of conversations goin on...oh well





...Disclaimer:...this statistic documentation is for my own need for visuals...

And for everyone,Im not obsessed with this stuff, but its nice to be visited, yesterday if y'all missed the bulletin, i had between 82-86 blog views and it was a funny thing, cuz before a week ago, i hadnt had a blog view, a single one for like 8 weeks..heehehe






Brooks Golden

No shines today

For real, no shines today indeed, it was a sign in more ways then one...a physically rainy day and mental one as well....lets part these clouds again...The shine returns tommorrow???....

Brooks

street performer ban?

NOTE: Alderman Burton Natarus (Ward 42) has continued to unconstitutionally restrict Chicago street artists. New ordinance passed in February 2006

* Street performer ban from Delaware-to-Superior on North Michigan Ave.
* License fee for street musicians increased to $75.
* Volume limited average conversational level could be heard 100 feet away, either horizontally or vertically.
* First offense raised to $300. License revoked for one-year for three violations in a one-year period.



While walking around Michigan avenue today with some friends I mentioned the absence of one of My favorite street performer the "Tin Man"..you know the guy above who covers himself in silver paint, stands on a crate most of the time and is often seen blaring Michael Jackson all day til 1-2 am...This man is a die hard hustler and street performer extraordinaire, I once realized the lucrative aspects of his "street performing" when I spotted The Tin Man with a laptop apple computer and a five gallon bucket full of dollar bills including the usual "1$ for pics and 5$ for video"...I then and only then realized that a person could realistically make a living doin this kind of performing....Back to today, i was informed that street performers were no longer allowed to perform in certain areas of the "Magnificent Mile"...The reason this conversaton even arose was because we could hear a bucket drummer dude from a block away or so....Before we even finished the conversation , a police officer crossed the street and asked the drummer kid to show a permit or leave,well,...he left the scene....we were all perplexed, how could the city pass an ordinance preventing people from performing in public?....I was, to say it lightly a little pissed that these small sometimes mundane aspects of city life are being exterminated,not only are they quite a spectacle for tourist,but obviously a viable way for a few of these talented folks to make an honest buck.....I finally exclaimed that stuff like this is definitely ruining our city...Yuppie Tourist control the vibe of the city now....click here for more info

Dream

I was told today by a friend that I was in her dream last night.Uh-Oh... I immediately smirked and mentally said "here we go" as I prepared to hear that I had done something solely embarrasing, weird or even worst, SEXUAL......So, I listened intently as this friend quickly describe my appearance in her dream first as a typical viewer in an art museum checking out some paintings or other random artworks, hand on my chin with a silly sense of interest>>>>Flash to her insisting on a home studio of her own for which she could create
art crafts music whatever her creative needs demanded, so I guess i somehow came to her assistance in designing or creating her home studio...I told her I was glad that I could be "helpful" to her not only in real life, but in her dreams as well....The whole thing was very special to me and left me with a level of positivity than is hard to describe....




Hopefully, something positive in me is rubbing off, and setting in...we'll see


Brooks

3 days

I had this funny experience were I overheard a conversation between some peeps at work....No names will be used to protect the privacy of said co-workers....





It goes something like this "A male coworker of mine was havin kinda a grumpy day, the females around him were teasing that he has chronic Sunday morning grumpiness from all the drinking he does on Saturday, he quickly exclaimed "I havent had a drink in 3 days!"....HAHAHAHAHAHAHAS! were all all around, disbelief was in the air,"Yeah right" was said more than a few times. Pissed at the acusations, or the assumptions of his lack of control, he turned to say to the "ringleader of the tormentors" and shouted "Yer one to talk?"...She quiclkly remarked "Whaddya mean Im one to talk?........


...to say the least it was an interesting experience for me, hardly in all my years have I ever heard folks that drink go at it over the acusations of lack of control.
The most interesting part is that I dont drink and am usally on the end of one of the defensive/offensive tirades.

bike blog

So i decide to start these "daily" blogs as away of letting you all into the day to day things that happen in my life..during commutes, conversations and other candid moments...They are intended to be snapshots ,so there is a good likelihood that they will be short and sweet. The operative word is SHORT.Thanks for reading...as always Peace...Brooks



So, Im standing on the street corner in front of the nearest Taqueria,waitng for the city bus to show, when this latino guy on a bike came flying down the sidewalk like a bat outta hell, a second earlier two guys one black,one white passed me going east on the same sidewalk..
Next thing I see is the guy on the bike with his hand out in order to give the passing guys a high five as he continues on his way..."He says Whussup, only to be given a half assed high five from the two passerbyers...Still speeding down the sidewalk,by the time he gets to me, he screams " HEY NIGGA I SAID WHUSSUP!!! , AND YOU AINT SAID NOTHING!!!"....these two fellas who hang out on the benches around the bus stops looked over to me and stared...puzzled. I wondered if they thought he was talkin to me, or were they lookin to me for a reaction for the use of the word Nigger/a..To say the least I rolled my eyes and waited impatiently for the bus...
...Given the Michael Richards controversy over its use this pass week, i couldnt help showing that this N word stuff really is a phenomenom that is like a train wreck waitng to happen...

Laters,

Brooks

...p.s. for yer knowledge,I dont especially like hearing people use the term Nigger/a, and pretty much anyone.."calling,texting,messaging"me nigger/a, gets frowned upon and let go....pretty simple.

columbus the great genocider

Date: Oct 12, 2006 10:45 AM

>

The Great Columbus Day Farce



Why Columbus Day should NOT be a celebrated holiday



Another Columbus Day is coming near. And, as with every Columbus Day for the past 4 years, I ask myself ..why do we celebrate a man who was no more than a murderer?.. Columbus sparked many a great western ideal. Capitalism, science as a religion, the establishment of a global monoculture, the enslavement of other races, the destruction of the environment, the eradication and abuse of life, and the genocide of America..s indigenous people are just a few of those ideals. If these are the ideals that he sparked, then why should we celebrate a power-hungry man, no better than Hitler?

History has always been a powerful storyteller, but not accurate. Often, accounts of injustice, stories of war, and genocide disappear for the people need to validate their position. History is written by the victors, the ones who carry out the genocide, the leaders of the conquest. Lies are sold as truth, and the truth is buried and forgotten. The truth has been erased and rewritten by generations of killers, ignorant accomplices, and speechless victims.

Even modern historians identify Columbus.. conquest as the birth of racism. Columbus.. journey was fueled by greed, the betterment of his people over others (and not the betterment of themselves as a people), and a desire to convert all peoples to Christianity. The conquest was the birth of an international slave trade, the start of the factory system of labor, and the death of an ancient way of life.

Columbus was obsessed by the idea that he could sail to India, and he spent years arguing for someone to finance his voyage. Columbus, whose religious convictions are often not taken into account, promised the king and queen of Spain that he would convert the ..heathens.. to Catholicism and use their gold to fund their holy war with the Muslims. Besides believing that all people should be Catholic, he wrote in his diaries that he believed the world was destined to end in 1650.

15th century Spain has been described by medieval scholars as ..a culture of death... The unbalance in the monarchal government led to a contentious society. Milton Melton described Columbus.. world in his book ..Columbus and the World Around Him.. as:

..Not many children lived to maturity. Landowners punished poachers. Health care was non-existent. The frequent wars promoted organized violence on a large scale. People were killed casually in quarrels, for cheating in gambling, over malicious gossip, in drinking bouts, and in urban riots...

These descriptions are tribute to Columbus and his successors who successfully duplicated the land they left in the new land.

There were about 100 million people in the new land, as compared to the approximately 60 or 70 million people in Europe. It has been found difficult to describe these natives though, for they had been destroyed too quickly, and what was written about them was written by the ones doing the killing.

The first culture which Columbus came in contact with were the Tainos. The Europeans described the Tainos as primitive, but the Tainos lived in small, clean huts, practiced sustainable agriculture, and they bathed often, three things that were not seen much in Europe. The two records of their meeting contradict and clash as violently as the cultures. On October 12, 1492, Columbus wrote ..The people are as naked as their mothers bore them, but well-dispositioned... He went on to say, ..they are a people who can be made free and converted to our Holy Faith. They ought to make good and skilled servants...

In a book written by Columbus.. son Ferdinand Columbus, a skirmish between the ..Indians and the Christians.. is described as a lesson intended to strike fear into the hearts of the natives.

Columbus.. most vocal critic, Fray Bartholome de Las Casas, wrote in his book, ..The Devastation of the Indies.. how Spaniards:

..Laid bets as to who, with one stroke of the sword, could split a man in two. They took infants from their mothers and threw them into the rivers, roaring with laughter. They burned captives alive, and, because on few and far between occasions, the Indians justifiably killed some Christians, the Spaniards made a rule among themselves that for every Christian slain, they would slay a hundred Indians...

As usual with governments, an investigation was begun, and the acts of the conquistadors had been made illegal, but little changed in the practice.

Columbus was made the first governor of the Indies, but was replaced and arrested in 1495 for inept administration. His successor, Nicolas de Ovando, continued Columbus.. way of governing. His first acts as governor were to massacre 85 Cubans and begin to trade slaves across the ocean from Africa to the Americas. For many years, the story of Columbus was ignored. Then, in 1792, the U.S. celebrated his acts while searching to justify it..s own history.

The life of Columbus changed the world drastically, his ways of greed, murder, and corruption still live on today in governments throughout the world. The culture he destroyed may never be realized for it..s beauty and spirituality. The earth is still bleeding from the destruction he began. Only time will tell us whether the human race will age gracefully, or continue the cycle that Columbus began. Do not celebrate Columbus Day if you believe (and I should hope that you do) that genocide, racism, slavery, and the destruction of the earth is wrong.

Brooks

beat kitchen burns to ground after boy sets fire...censored for a lil myspace buddy.

Am I too old to stage dive??..i guess not...my old **s was flying from the stage, during one of the coolest songs Ive ever heard live.... The Fully Down rocked out really well, I really enjoyed them enough buy their new cd, the band Versus The Mirror played some really good metal-core stuff but i cant stand when a singers only vocal trick is that high pitched screamy ish...it made every song sound the same...then Boy Sets Fire came on , Ive been listening to them since about 1997-1998 and it was the first time I saw them in like 7-8 years. Well i'm kind of a purist and i cant say that I was impressed with their latest cd's...Well that changed tonight...Even if they changed musically, they still can play some real f-in hardcore, I saw it with my own two eyes.....it was the real thing. They played about 4-5 songs then I guess the song called "Final Communique" came on . My thoughts went something like this a couple songs before.....


-Man this f-in show is really good so far.....


-Dude if someone steps on my shoes we're fightin'.....


-What the f**k is that punk rock girl doin?.....


- F**k I wanted to be the first to stage dive!!!.....


-Forget my shoes i'm doin that ish.....


-What there are throwing people out for diving?...that punk girl barely even


dived, she was up in down ...how uneventful.....


-These fools need to see some real style from '96...see how real sxe kids do.....


- What about my glasses?.....


-Give them ish to Em.....


-Im way too old for this ish.....


-F**k That....Im doin it!.....


-Final Communique Comes on.....


-Oh My F-in God!.....


-What are you doin ?.....


-Some Christ Air styles...Urban Jesus is in the building......


-The Chorus...1 2 3 4...weve found a new obsession!...


-4 3 2 1...counting down to your extinction!...


-1 2 3 4..weve found a new obsession!!!...


-4 3 2 1...zero hour for the march of the damned...


Then I did something like this:......






...Having said this , i definately puttin this show in my top ten...right along with the Morrissey show in Cali 2004,
The Integrity show at the Fireside(r.i.p)1999,and The Faint show at the Booth house2000...yes a basement show, that surpassed all that rockstar 40 foot stage bulls**t...
hardcore rulez...

...Me and Emmi were runnin the show.....laters

P.s. They BSF stopped the show to support my right to dive at a show, I think I was
referred to as a friend...well, I really felt like one at that moment.........



-Comments from myspacers



Misericorde (Bex)


Good job, baby..shades of '96, eh? Wish I'd known you then, when you were still a stage divin, two steppin, windmillin', slam dancin' fool....hardcore. Glad you had a great time. Beat Kitchen is now just a pile of rubble on the ground after boy sets fire.... lol. Love the description of what was going through your head the second before you stage dived.

Posted by Misericorde (Bex) on Tuesday, May 02, 2006 at 12:24 AM
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Brooks Blair Golden


..Yeah i was a fool alright, we met at the right time, when I started to refine myself a bit...I call it fine tuning. Im glad you got to witness me at a really great and free moment in my life........OXOXOOXOXOXX...

Posted by Brooks Blair Golden on Tuesday, May 02, 2006 at 12:36 AM
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DANCE-FLOOR INCLUDED


That's AWESOME,. Thanks for 'Living' with me. That's how I feel before I take my clothes off and dart into traffic, which is commonly referred to as streaking!

Posted by DANCE-FLOOR INCLUDED on Sunday, May 07, 2006 at 11:49 PM
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Brooks Blair Golden


..Im just glad ive never witnessed such an atrocious display of masculinity...

Posted by Brooks Blair Golden on Monday, May 08, 2006 at 12:01 AM
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I am BigFoot


Good stuff man... makes me want to go to a show.
Last real good show I went to was Hot Water Music at the Cactus Club a few years back. It was just like the old days, small room, hot, lots of familiar faces and tons of energy. Shirts off, singing along, stage diving, J Smith even stage dived. If you want to hear some good old style hardcore, check into Final Exit, Umea Cd and Raised fist, Dedication CD. Raised Fist have a new one coming out in May sometime. I really hope it doesn't suck as they are one of the best bands ever. They are both from Sweden, but not like At the Gates. Were you by chance at the last Pennywise show at the Unicorn? Super show, most kids walked away because the door was like 12 or 15 bucks, and no one wanted to pay. What about the old Mighty Mighty Bosstone shows at the Unicorn? Super fun too. And Mean Season with Unbroken? Or Converge with Harvest, Botch, and some other good band which slips my mind- in a basement by Cass street school! The good ol' days for sure...

Posted by I am BigFoot on Friday, May 19, 2006 at 7:41 PM
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Brooks Blair Golden


..I wanna say it was converge, harvest, botch and threadbare????...or mean season????

Posted by Brooks Blair Golden on Friday, May 19, 2006 at 7:55 PM
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*erin


ha, just read your excellent blog... you are so outta control man!!! you rock. very descriptive, a good read. maybe you should take up your wife's profession as well?

Posted by *erin on Friday, May 19, 2006 at 7:42 PM
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Brooks Blair Golden


HaHa!...maybe if I strung all my corny one-liners together, I might get a page worth of material...

Posted by Brooks Blair Golden on Friday, May 19, 2006 at 7:57 PM
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newyork,new york, big city of dreams...but everything in new york aint always what it seems..

...Well,as some of you may know i just returned from a short trip from NYC,and for the first time I wasnt awestruck...maybe some of the novelty of the whole thing has worn off a bit...
...As usual my trip was fully art-oriented , but there were a few things that happened aside from the relentless art-stomp....here's a few things i can remember......

~12noon flight into NYC (Laguardia) on Sunday...
~Hanging out with my gal pal Rachel at Pratt Art school
~A mouse chews through my bag in search for peanuts...ruins bag and finds nuts.
~Mouse is officially named Little Stewart...Little Bastard is more like it...
~Had a great meal at a restaurant in Brooklyn called Rice w/Liat, Rachel and for a short
period Sam Gable.

~Monday: hangin' out w/ my friend James and his sister, her boyfriend and her son Nick.
~Floral District...stupid plants all over the damn sidewalk.
~Garment District or looking for beads...boring..sorry lisa
~Macy's Department store..Honey/Bee themed store,wierd tourist takin' a tour of Macy's
and being shown floral arrangements by a guy w/ a laser pointer...yippee
~More Midtown madness,and off too Union Square for the best people watchin and chillin
out...Whole Foods is there...all im sayin is Pumpkin Muffin
~Back to Brooklyn for Rachel Budde/Sam Freeman's art opening at Pratt...
~Artwork is crazy good and then some graffiti hooligans (hats and hoodies) enter and make it all shady...always lookin to talk ish or steal some ish period.
~Dinner at Thai 101...w/Rach,Liat and Andy
~The Rockstar foots the bill..What a cool dude,really...thanks Andy.
~Late at night I head back to the city for a stroll..boring,and back to Brooklyn
~Back to Liats for the hospitality of a shared futon...sleep like a rock....ZZZZZZZZZZ!!!


~Tuesday:Shower w/ a strange towel..the rasta roomate i bet..my bag.
~Over to Rach's for breakfast..vegan sausage,gravy,arugula salad and wheat toast w/honey...yummy..yummy
~Meet up w/ James for Art-stomping through chelsea...hang with Jason the Personal Trainer, who's late to his appointment with "nice" asian girl.~Lunch in Grant Park(Times Square for New Yorkers)w/ Crispy soul chicken from Veggie Paradise..I love that place...OMG!
~Over to Janes Shoestore which is by far the craziest shoe obsessed place is ever been..
...Shoes all of them, wrapped in shrink wrap for that mint look, collectors have way too much money...1,250 dollars to 2,250 for the infamous Pigeon SB Dunk...I thought I was
gonna find this shoe...how naive, I really hate sneakers....really.
~Back to Union Square and over to Strand books...officially the best bookstore ever..im just sayin'....its official.
~Spent obscene (over a hundred bucks)amount of money on artbooks,gotta spend it on something...
~Dojo 's for last minute meal...cash only please...credit card is no good there....whatev.


~Wednesday:early day and off to the Whitney for the spectacular biennial..details later.
~But before that, take a stroll down to the Metropolitan Museum of Art For a small Kara Walker showing...I like that they let you take photos,otherwise I gotta get stealth on those slackers....
~Over to the NY Transit Museum for a small trinket for my love...metro card tote....
~6 train to N train to Astoria Blvd...M60bus to Laguardia...standby flight back to the Lovely Chi....if anyone can reccommend some low-key cool stuff to do, i think me and em are tryin to go back in august...im supposed to do a group showing in Massachusetts....Peace



.....at this point, im too lazy to post a new blog..ill mention that I walked around the whitney with the best director....Woody Allen & his stepdaughter turned wifey..Soon Mi....outrageously entertaining watching everyone flip out the moment woody passed by....Gotta love NY.

Childhood heroes...The legend of John Henry, Steel Drivin Man.

There was only one real hero I had as a child, it was the direct result of a story that I was read to me in kindrgarten or first grade..it has stayed with me all this time and was recently brought back into my spectrum. Thank god, i can still remember anything! But the moral of this story was about having determination and perseverence....Enjoy the story of the Legend:

JOHN HENRY, STEEL DRIVING MAN



John Henry was a railroad man,
He worked from six 'till five,

"Raise 'em up bullies and let 'em drop down,

I'll beat you to the bottom or die."

John Henry said to his captain:
"You are nothing but a common man,

Before that steam drill shall beat me down,

I'll die with my hammer in my hand."

John Henry said to the Shakers:
"You must listen to my call,

Before that steam drill shall beat me down,

I'll jar these mountains till they fall."

John Henry's captain said to him:
"I believe these mountains are caving in."

John Henry said to his captain: "Oh, Lord!"

"That's my hammer you hear in the wind."

John Henry he said to his captain:
"Your money is getting mighty slim,

When I hammer through this old mountain,

Oh Captain will you walk in?"

John Henry's captain came to him
With fifty dollars in his hand,

He laid his hand on his shoulder and said:

"This belongs to a steel driving man."

John Henry was hammering on the right side,
The big steam drill on the left,

Before that steam drill could beat him down,

He hammered his fool self to death.

They carried John Henry to the mountains,
From his shoulder his hammer would ring,

She caught on fire by a little blue blaze

I believe these old mountains are caving in.

John Henry was lying on his death bed,
He turned over on his side,

And these were the last words John Henry said

"Bring me a cool drink of water before I die."

John Henry had a little woman,
Her name was Pollie Ann,

He hugged and kissed her just before he died,

Saying, "Pollie, do the very best you can."

John Henry's woman heard he was dead,
She could not rest on her bed,

She got up at midnight, caught that No. 4 train,

"I am going where John Henry fell dead."

They carried John Henry to that new burying ground
His wife all dressed in blue,

She laid her hand on John Henry's cold face,

"John Henry I've been true to you.",


this was a great painting of John Henry by artist Craig Rousseau




...And finally this was an image from a book The legend of John Henry Steel Drivin' Man...




Brooks