Why I'm So Addicted to African Cinema

Back in 2006 my friend and I who lives in Harlem, decided to walk down to 125th street to find some bootleg movies that pirates had just made in the Magic Johnson theater. Not satisfied with the random selections, we decided to go to another spot that carried blaxploitation movies that was located right next to the Apollo Theater. Not exactly impressed with the prices, especially since he had many of his movies on vhs, we decided it was time to leave there. So we keep it moving. We walked back up towards 135th street and come across the Nigerian man who has a shop that was tucked away in the cut. You know the shops that sells hats, scarves, gloves and movies. We go in and immediately I am drawn to the old Kung-Fu flicks from the 1980's circa.


Nadia Buari and Jackie Appiah


Van Vicker


Then the man told us to give the African movies a chance and that we would never regret it. Can I say that til this day, we have no regrets in picking up that first Nigerian movie called "Tom & Jerry". Yes I said it Tom & Jerry was the first African comedy that had us falling over in our chairs from laughter. First off the two guys who play the characters of Tom & Jerry look like little boys, but they are actually grown men. I have grown to love these two actors Osita Iheme and Chinedu Ikedieze. This popular duo in Nollywood are often cast in movies together either wreaking havoc on others or playing big money swindlers.

My personal favorite Nigerian actress is Genevieve Nnaji who gained success back in 1998. She was great in the movies: Blood Sisters, Games Women Play and Girls Cot. While all three of these actors have caught my eye, other actors are on the rise from the continent. Ghanaian cinema is also becoming popular. Nadia Buari, Van Vicker and Jackie Appiah are the dominant trio as they are always cast in movies together. Their most notable film "Beyonce" has become a hit worldwide. Yes, worldwide. In fact many movies in this genre are sold in Florida, New York and Canada.

While the acting is not like A list actors in America, it's still convincing in it's story lines and plots. If I were to compare the two countries in terms of overall production, story lines and the amount of movies produced, Nigeria would probably win hands down. But when factoring in audio, cinematography, setting, costumes and makeup, Ghana would win hands down. Both countries have found their niche in movie production while garnering the attention of a large fan base overseas. While I do agree with friends that the ending scenes of some of the movies are a little over the top, they still have my vote that they will take over the movie game. Not to mention the price is right on all movies. You will usually spend $5 a pop per movie, but I found a gold mine on Nostrand Avenue where the owner sells his movies for $4 per movie. I even negotiated with him to sell me the movie that comes in three parts for $4. Nollywood is and has been on the rise.

Here is a clip from Beyonce-The president's daughter:


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Are food portions becoming smaller in size?

While doing the usual grocery store run, I noticed the trend becoming more and more common among big food giants. The portions of food are becoming obviously smaller. Now I'm not talking about the extra air in the bag of potato chips that is always half filled with air and the other half chips. Cereal, cheese, sausage and other breakfast items are smaller in portion. Ground beef comes in half the size that it used to come in just five years ago. The family size is the way to go, even for consumers without families. The prices of the items either stays the same or increases, but the quantity of the product decreases. Imagine the households with multiple children who naturally have growing appetites. Mom and dad now have to double, even triple the amount of purchases. That means about five boxes of cereal for a family with let's say two kids (we all know how kids love to go through one box). As I stated in a previous post last year that I cringed when I saw the price of one block of cheese from Cracker Barrel that was every bit of $5. Is cheese becoming the new delicacy because of it's price? Cheese is a necessity in any household like eggs, milk and bread. Dairy products in general are unreasonably high and several of their products have fallen victim to the "smaller portion" trend.




The first thing that I learned months ago and have tried to stick to is buying generic brands of food and household products. I learned that some generic brands taste just as good as the name brand products. I never used coupons in the past because many of the coupons in the weekly circulars I didn't consume. I now look for coupons for many of the products that I consume now. Balancing and saving those pennies from coupons help out. Some local chain super markets also offer $10 off coupons from time to time. So while that family size bag of Lay's chips is filled with what seems like 20 chips, the consumer can find other ways to save at the market. It's kind of hard to stretch out smaller portions of food making leftovers for lunch the following day almost nil. If you can find your own ways to saving @ the checkout line, you can share your tips here. Sphere: Related Content

What Happened to the Adage of Don't Talk To or Go Anywhere With Strangers?

It's funny how far adults will go to talk to a stranger. It's one thing if you're networking at a party and you randomly introduce yourself to people as a means of gaining contacts. It's another if you're randomly picking up women to get into their pants. I remember my parents drilling my brother and I as kids on how not to talk to strangers and don't ever go anywhere with a stranger. No matter what the situation was I was definitely scared after watching the movie Adam back in the early '80's. I was scared to death, knowing that a stranger could walk up to me and lure me with candy or pull me into a car.

As an adult the same situation applies. I refuse to go anywhere with someone I don't know. While in the club a few weeks back, a man came up to me and asked me if I was having a good time. "Yes, this is a great party, nice atmosphere and cool people." The next thing that came out of his mouth was "Do you want to go home with me?" I looked at him like he was dropped on his head as a baby and just didn't have it all upstairs. "Do I know you? Why would I go somewhere with a total stranger?" Do you know what his lame excuse was? "We're both adults." I went on to tell him that his lame excuse had nothing to do with the price of tea in China.

Then I went as far as to break it down to him because he was so clueless as to why I was so disgusted at his attempt to woo me. "You didn't ask me my name and you don't know me from a hole in the wall. Why would you risk your safety just to knock boots with a stranger?" I could see the disappointment in his face as he started to turn red. "What if I were a psycho chick who you brought home and I decided to set you up or even what if i were to cut your throat?" He didn't like that at all. "I want to give you a few words of advice, when you approach a woman, don't be so overbearing, it's a turnoff. I know that as a grown man you have it in you to approach a woman in a polite manner. After I lectured him on how to be soft in his approach, he rolled his eyes and stepped off mad at the fact that I wouldn't go home with a total stranger. Then I thought to myself, obviously chicks do go home with him if he felt the need to step to women in this fashion. If that one woman didn't say "yes" then he wouldn't think he can go around asking women to go home with him. Maybe he thougnt he was flattering a sista, but I shut that down real quick. As he walked away he was mouthing something to me, but of course I couldn't hear over the loud music. Give me a break, you're mad because I had to break it down to a grown man who should know better even as an adult not to go anywhere with a stranger? As the world gets crazier and more blasphemous, people still put themselves at risk. Smdh.


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Why are people so out of control on the subway?

So like it was stated in some of the earlier posts, riding the NYC subway is a trial in itself. Then there are always stories about unruly passengers, sick passengers, dancers and the mirachi band that invades your immediate space by placing a cello in front of your face. This little boy got on the #3 train at Borough Hall in Brooklyn. He comes on the train stomping hard "Tell me why I can't have it", he yelled at his middle aged father. While dad was ignoring him as he clutched the hands of the little boy and his older sister, he looked around at the dissaproving stares. Again he exclaimed, "Tell me why I can't have it, and tell me now!" This little boy the proceeds to kick his father in the leg, punch him in the stomach and tries to swing on him, but dad quickly caught that upper cut. "You're outta control, stop it," he compromised. Then he hauls off and punches his older sister right in the head! "Are you ok honey?" She yelled back "no" daddy.I mean this kid was completely out of control, and all his father could say, was that he needed to calm down. I think everyone in the subway car wanted to take the kid home for a couple of hours and straighten him out.
As others were shaking their heads in disbelief I wondered to myself, why do I always have to see this type of foolishness on the subway? I always feel like if I board another subway car maybe I will be spared some kind of fuckery for the day. Whether it's morning or evening rush hour, it's guaranteed and almost inevitable that there will always be some kind of entertainment on the trains and buses. While most of the time I get a few good laughs out of all of it, there are times where I feel like I have to clutch my mace if I feel like my surroundings are being compromised. Sphere: Related Content

Will New Yorkers Contribute More to the MTA for a Greener Planet?

This is an excerpt from the local news station here in the NYC metro area. I'm sure other cities may use this as a model for their transportations systems.



NEW YORK (WABC) -- The transit agency that runs New York City's public transportation system is considering asking riders to make donations to help in its efforts at environmental sustainability.


Is this another way of commuters to close the "gap" within the system? The only incentive to making the donation is that it can be used as a write off during tax season. There is no other incentive other than knowing that your contirbutions are going towards saving the planet. Now I'm a stark advocate for the environment and I wish I could afford to buy a hybrid car. Yes I am as equally concerned about future generations who have to deal with the issues of climate change. But are the contributions really going to have the long lasting affects that should have been implemented years ago?
Is the system asking for too much even in the wake of a necessary fare hike in the spring that will also help close the gap?

How do you as commuters feel about the whole situation about the MTA going green? Is this the right time to go green and ask for charitable donations in a rocky economy? This issue isn't limited to only those in the NYC area. Other major cities may implement similar measures to make for a greener environment. With service cuts system wide and the elimination of a few train and bus routes, is it too much to ask the average commuter to dish out more? Riding the train is a hassle in itself. It can be uncomfortable at times and can be seen as a platform for daily entertainment. Maybe if the MTA would have consideration for all riders not just the subway lines, but buses, LIRR and Metro North, maybe people would be more giving. Sphere: Related Content

Do Guys Really Move on After the Breakup?

It's always assumed that guys move on faster than women after a serious breakup. Serious meaning a serious relationship for at least a year or more. Has the dating game become different for the sexes in terms of who sulks more after the "it's not you, it's me" line? Having recently spoken to a friend who I haven't heard from in about a year, I asked her what was the deal with her boyfriend she had been dating for four years. By now he was her "ex" and she exclaimed that he was trying to hold on to something that wasn't there anymore-the relationship. They apparently broken up because of his alleged cheating habits. What was more amusing was the fact that her "ex" was delusional about the whole break up and was calling on the regular like nothing happened. The kicker was whe she told him that she had moved on with her life and that she was serious about her current interest well before his delusional state set in. Delusional is the perfect word to describe him because he shed dry tears and whimpered like a baby when he found her new flame's number on her missed calls on the Blackberry.
Why was he searching you ask? Who knows. The same reason why women go snooping around in their man's phone, pants, jacket pockets and Jansport's, just to find something they know they dont want to see and get to crying and asking-"why you do me like this". Can a dude handle the fact that his old girlfriend has moved on and isn't concerned with blowing up his phone? Is the old addage true that men don't have as much emotion when it comes to the breakup? Or do you guys just hold it all in for show and then break their peace while in their comfort zone? Are the roles now reversed? Are women starting to act like men now and if so is it too much to handle? Personally I don't think it's the worst thing in the world for a man to express his hurt but please don't start crying and weeping like it's the end of the world.
Maybe this old school Milli Vanilli song can help ease the pain:

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