Prince tops US charts for first time in 17 years - Yahoo! News

Musician Prince performs at the Brit Awards in London in this February 15, 2006 file photo. On March 29, Prince's record label said he had scored his first No. 1 album on the U.S. pop charts in almost 17 years with his latest release, '3121.' (Kieran Doherty/Reuters)

Prince tops US charts for first time in 17 years - Yahoo! News: "Wed Mar 29, 11:13 PM ET

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Innovative funk rocker Prince scored his first No. 1 album on the U.S. pop charts in almost 17 years with his latest release, '3121,' his record label said on Wednesday.

The album sold 183,000 copies in the week ended last Sunday, and also ranked as his first release to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, according to a statement from Universal Records.

Prince, 47, last topped the charts in 1989 with the soundtrack to the 'Batman' movie, and also reached No. 1 in 1985 with 'Around the World in a Day' and in 1984 with 'Purple Rain.' At that time, albums usually worked their way up the charts, based on the educated guesswork of the compilers.

Since 1991, the charts have been calculated with more accurate point-of-sale data collected by Nielsen SoundScan, and it is more common for albums to debut at No. 1.

Prince lost his commercial touch in the 1990s, but he has started to recover some of his glory in recent years. On the heels of his 2004 induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, he launched a successful tour and released an album, 'Musicology,' that debuted at No. 3 in April 2004 with sales of 191,000 copies.

That album went on to ship more than 2 million copies, largely because Prince gave away a copy to everyone who bought a concert ticket. The compilers of the Billboard 200 have since changed their rules so that such freebies do not count.

Universal Records is a unit of Vivendi Universal SA."

GO MASON!!!!! AOL News - Huskies Waste Lead, Stumble Out of Tourney

George Mason's Lamar Butler (22) reacts after beating Connecticut 86-84 in overtime during the fourth round game of the NCAA basketball tournament in Washington, Sunday, March 26, 2006.

Photograph by : AP Photo/Susan Walsh

AOL News - Huskies Waste Lead, Stumble Out of Tourney: "WASHINGTON (March 26) - For all of its NBA-ready talent, all of its basketball pedigree, No. 1-seeded Connecticut never put together a complete game in the NCAA Tournament.

Now, upset of upsets, UConn of the mighty Big East is heading home, and 11th-seeded George Mason from the Colonial Athletic Association is heading to Indianapolis for its first Final Four."

500,000 Pack Streets to Protest Immigration Bills - Los Angeles Times

Thousands protest against House-passed HR 4437, an anti-immigration bill that opponents say will criminalize millions of immigrant families and anyone who comes into contact with them.

(Bob Chamberlin / LAT)

Mar. 25, 2006

500,000 Pack Streets to Protest Immigration Bills - Los Angeles Times: "A crowd estimated by police at more than 500,000 boisterously marched in Los Angeles on Saturday to protest federal legislation that would crack down on undocumented immigrants, penalize those who help them and build a security wall along the U.S.' southern border.

Spirited but peaceful marchers — ordinary immigrants alongside labor, religious and civil rights groups — stretched more than 20 blocks along Spring Street, Broadway and Main Street to City Hall, tooting kazoos, waving American flags and chanting, 'Sí se puede!' (Yes we can!)."

Rice Accepts DJ's Apology for Racial Slur - Yahoo! News

Rice Accepts DJ's Apology for Racial Slur - Yahoo! News: "On his show, Lenihan said: 'She's been chancellor of Stanford. She's got the patent resume of somebody that has serious skill. She loves football. She's African-American, which would kind of be a big coon. A big coon. Oh my God. I am totally, totally, totally, totally, totally sorry for that.'

He said he had meant to say 'coup' instead of the slur. KTRS president and general manager Tim Dorsey agreed that the remark was accidental but announced the same day that Lenihan had been fired.

Rice said Sunday that the incident is evidence that the 'birth defect' of slavery infuses even mature democracies with racial tensions that take generations to heal.

Rice added that she hopes the episode inspires Americans to 'be a little bit more humble' about the progress of emerging democracies such as those in
Iraq and
Afghanistan."

Alone...

no accountability
no rules because I've made them all up
made them all up as I go along
no attachment
no connection
everything exists in my head
and when i try to pull you in
and you resist...
you resist
~~~
~~~
I ask what's wrong with you
a sincere question...
what's wrong with you?
I'm learning everything...right?
my learning curve...
I'm on it, my learning curve, when you challenge me
and i don't have an answer....
learning curve
and no accountability
no accountability
and jimi says,
"and so Castles made of sand slips to the sea eventually"
No foundation
No connection
no checks
no balances
makes the learning curve...long
but as long as you have me think everything's all under control
I can't send any prayers of guidance or protection up for you
But I trust...
everything I've learned about life
tells me you and me,
we all need them

To the GW's of the world

Dedicated to all the GW's of the world...

Mystery of Inequity by Lauryn Hill Unplugged

[sing songy Chorus intro]
It's the mystery of Inequity...
Said it's the misery of Inequity...
Said it's the history of Inequity...
When it all...
All falls down...
Telling you all...
It all falls down

Children...
Eat your bread
Little children...
Eat your bread
Cuz it all...
All falls down...
Telling you all...
It all falls down

[First and only verse]
Yo!
Ya'll can't handle the truth in a courtroom of lies
Perjures the jurors
Witness despised
Crooked lawyers
False Indictments publicized
Its entertainment...the arraignments
The subpoenas
High profile gladiators in bloodthirsty arenas
Enter the Dragon
Black-robe crooked-balance
Souls bought and sold and paroled for thirty talents
Court reporter catch the surface on the paper
File it in the system not acknowledged by the Maker
Swearing by the bible blatantly blasphemous
Publicly perpetrating that "In God We Trust"
Cross-examined by a master manipulator
The faster intimidator
Receiving the judge's favor
Deceiving sabers doing injury to they neighbors
For status, gratis, apparatus and legal waivers
See the bailiff
Representing security
Holding the word of God soliciting perjury
The prosecution
Political prostitution
The more money you pay.. the further away solution
Legal actors
Babylon's benefactors
Masquerading as the agency for the clients
Hypocritical giants
Morally non-compliant
Orally armed to do bodily harm
Polluted, recruited and suited judicial charm
And the defense isn't making any sense
Faking the confidence of escaping the consequence
That a defendant is depending on the system
Totally void of judgment purposely made to twist em'
Emotional victim blackmailed by the henchmen
Framed by intentions
Inventions whereby they lynch men
Enter the false witness slandering the accused
Planting the seed openly showing he's being used
To discredit, edit, headed for the alleged
Smearing the individual fearing the unsuspected
Expert witness (the paid authority)
Made a priority to deceive the majority
Of disinterested peers
Dodging duty for years
Hating the process
waiting to be returning to their careers
Do we expect the system made for the elect
To possibly judge correct?
Properly serve and protect?
Materially corrupt
Spiritually amuck
Oblivious to the cause
Prosperously bankrupt
Blind leading the blind
Guilty never defined
Filthy as swine
A generation purin it's own mind
Legal extortion
Blown out of proportion
In vein deceit
The truth is obsolete
Only two positions:
Victimizer or Victim
Both end up in destruction trusting this crooked system
Mafia with diplomas keeping us in a coma trying to own a piece
of the "American Corona"
The Revolving Door
Insanity every floor
Skyscraping, paper chasing
What are we working for?
Empty traditions
Reaching social positions
Teaching ambition to support the family superstition?
When the Son of Podition is Commander in Chief
The standard is Thief
Brethren can we candidly speak?
Woe to the men
Trusted in the chariots dem'
Leaning on horses
They run their intellectual sources
Counterfeit wisdom creating the illusion of freedom
Confusion consumes them
Every word they speak it turns them out really white
Internally they absent of light
trapped in the night and bonded to the Cain of the night
Under the curse
Evil men waxing more worse
Faxing the first
Angelic being cast to the earth
It's time for rebirth
Burnin up the branch and the root
The empty pursuits of every tree bearing the wrong fruit
Turning me ill
Let him who stole, no longer steal
Oh it's real
Surrender for Jehovah is real
How long will you sleep
Troubled by the thoughts that YOU keep
The idols YOU heap
Causing the destruction you reap
Judgment has come
Find it and return to the One
Abandon the flesh
Self-interest: Broadway to death
Pride and the Greed
Hide and subdividing the seed
The knowledge of Good and Evil is what caused us to lie
Caused us to die
Let your emotions be crucified
Renounce all your thoughts
Repent and let your mind be re-taught
You'll find what you sought...was based on the deception you bought
A perception of naught
Where the majority remains caught

Loving a lie
Not realizing in Adam, all die

Loving a lie
Not realizing in Adam, all die

Loving a lie
Not realizing in Adam, all die

Loving a lie
Not realizing in Adam, all die

[sing songy Chorus Outro]
It's the mystery of Inequity
Say it's the history of Inequity
Say it's the misery of Inequity
When it all...
All falls down
I'm telling you all...
It all falls down

4 Months

We are four months today. In a few weeks we'll be half way through our pregnancy. How Exciting?!!!!!

Prince's '3121': Some Funky Little Numbers

Prince's '3121': Some Funky Little Numbers: "You remember Prince, right?

Not the Artist Formerly Known as Brilliant, that defiant glyph who stumbled into an abyss of self-absorbed musical mediocrity in the 1990s and became more interesting for his eccentricities than for his unfocused and largely forgettable albums ('Come,' 'Emancipation,' 'The Rainbow Children'). But the undisputed pop genius and funk-rock master -- the virtuosic innovator behind 'Dirty Mind,' '1999' and 'Sign 'O' the Times.' His Royal Badness."

We are 15 weeks as of Friday. Everything seems to be going well. I keep trying to feel the baby move when I am still. Maybe any day now. With the movements being so subtle right now, it's probably hard to distinguish from other bodily functions :)

I think the baby likes pizza because we eat it very often... at least once a week. I need to go to the grocery store today to pick up more veggies and fruit.

The weather...temperature is going to take a dip again. We may even have snow on Tuesday. I would love to pull one more snow day off this year. That would be fabulous.

I should probably do some laundry today. I should probably go outside and feel the sun on my face. The best part about the weekends these days is staying in and not having to move if I don't feel like it. I used to want to cram everything into those two days and felt guilty/lazy if I didn't. Not anymore!!!!!!! We love to lounge and rest! Who knew growing a baby would be such hard work? It's a blessing though!

Educators Shed Light on Northern Slavery - Yahoo! News

Educators Shed Light on Northern Slavery - Yahoo! News: "OYSTER BAY, N.Y. - A group of mostly white seventh and eighth graders sleepily sauntered into their school library, soon to get a surprise awakening about a part of their town's history they never knew existed.

'Did anybody in this room know there were 60 enslaved Africans, people, human beings, buried a mile from here?' Alan Singer, a professor at Hofstra University, asked them. 'Those people have been erased from history. It is as if they never existed.'

Singer and Mary Carter, a retired middle school social studies teacher, were in Oyster Bay recently to speak to the kids — part of a quest to develop a public school curriculum guide focusing on slavery's impact in the northern U.S., specifically New York."

Irish PM voices concern to Bush over CIA flights - Yahoo! News

Irish PM voices concern to Bush over CIA flights - Yahoo! News: "WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Ireland's prime minister used a Saint Patrick's Day visit to hammer home to
President George W. Bush concerns about secret
CIA flights through his country and treatment of inmates at the U.S. prison at Guantanamo.

Prime Minister Bertie Ahern raised the issue of rendition, the controversial U.S. practice of moving terrorism suspects from one country to another, in White House talks on Friday, saying he had pressed for 'more transparency.'"

FBI: No Federal Charges in Till Killing - Yahoo! News

FBI: No Federal Charges in Till Killing - Yahoo! News: "JACKSON, Miss. - The
FBI said Thursday that no federal charges will be filed in the grisly 1955 killing of 14-year-old Emmett Till, a case that helped galvanize the civil rights movement.

After a reopened investigation that included the exhumation of Till's body for an autopsy last June, FBI agent John G. Raucci said in a statement that the five-year statute of limitations on federal civil rights violations had expired."

What in the h.e.l.l. is a "War on Terror"?

What is terror? Are the words "Arab" or "Muslim" a part of the definition? When many think of terror they think of the middle east. In general, the face/profile of terror has a nationality, a look, a color. Please, please, please... think for yourself! Guard your mind! Don't believe the hype!

Bush should be impeached.

New Prince Aibum...Amazon.com: 3121: Music: Prince

Amazon.com: 3121: Music: Prince

Growth

Last night, I noticed that baby must have been hanging out on one side of it's home (my uterus). Sorry, There's no way to talk about what's happening without being a little (or a lot) graphic. I could't find a comfortable postition last night. I kept having little sensations that let me know that the little one was adjusting him/her self. My husband says I'm carry low, so it must be a girl. I said, "honey, everything is low. It (my uterus) hasn't grown up that far yet".... Bless his heart. He's trying. (LOL)

I'm finally feeling more than just bloated. I can feel that there is something in there. That makes it all the more real! Blessed!

Sopranos

I saw the Sopranos last night. Oh My!!!! This season has started with a bang. I can't wait to see where this season is going. I think I heard that this was the last season. Dang!

Why did I...?

Why did I fall asleep on the Sopranos last night? It came on at 9pm, an hour before the L-Word. I was in and out of sleep. I just remembered that Tony Soprano got ________.

Oh well, I am looking forward to The Sopranos On Demand. Thank goodness for On Demand.

I had a productive day. Busy, busy, busy... I should go take a nap now.

More thoughts...

It takes time to get over some things. And other times it takes other things, circumstances and events to get over some stuff. We do have to chew on something... toss it around in our minds until we can make sense of it, put it in persepctive enough to let it go.

I love the song my Soul II Soul called "Keep On Moving"... We really do have to, as CG Says, "Keep it moving!" Nothing waits or rest or stops turning for us while we try to figure out what is happening with us. We just have to trust that where ever we are, it is okay to be there. Without judgment...it's okay. Hopefully, we get something valuable out of it. Not the pity party stuff... that's old school 8 track tape playing in your head. One of my favorite books, The Four Agreements, says "Don't take anything personally." I know that I have done that before...many times before. But it's not always about us. I know that's hard to understand when we look at things from our own perspective. What other perspective do we have, right? We just have to remember that we only have ours. There is a huge unknown out there. I don't want to always choose the negative to explain life and life's occurences. It's not always about us! When we peek out from under (or above or around) ourselves, we see that there is "A Whole New World".

Enjoy it!!!

Sopranos Tonight

I've been looking forward to the return of Tony Soprano for a long time now. I hope it's worth the wait. Hopefully, I will have enough energy to stay up and watch. Thanks Comcast for On Demand because I don't think my energy will last that long.

Family and other thoughts...that are mine!

I just had the best weekend with my family. My nephew had another track meet this weekend. So, everyone except my brother came up for the event. My mom and I didn't make it to the event, but we met them for dinner afterward. My nephew didn't do as well as he did in the last few months. But we still celebrated the fact that he made it to the National competition after jumping since January 2006. Not January of his 8th grade year, but January 2006 of his senior year! The young man has natural talent. Now we need to get him into a college that has just as much to offer him athletically and academically as he has to offer them.

My mom hemmed my maternity pants for me. I needed it bad. Very Bad. Thank Goodness she can sew. She left her sewing machine here. I will find a pattern so that I can make some decorative pillows. That will be fun! I finished my middle nephew's scarf. He may have to wait until next year to wear it though. The weather was spectacular here this weekend.

I look forward to seeing everyone again soon!

It's important to be important to somebody and a lot of somebodies. It's cool to know your place... know where you stand in the lives of those who are important to you and vice versa. Be happy! Be happy! At least be in the process of being happy! Be happy! Life doesn't always have to be miserable. It doesn't always have to be a struggle. Just be! Exist... with a smile. A real genuine smile. Work your sh*t out when you aren't smiling! Listen to the indicators, the signals, the alert system that's built inside that lets you know when something ain't right inside.

These are just my thoughts for now. Don't know why I'm sharing them, but I am... Life is too short for misery to become our default mode of existence.

Live. Laugh. Love.

Bush's Approval Rating Falls to New Low - Yahoo! News... GO BUSH!!!!!!

Bush's Approval Rating Falls to New Low - Yahoo! News: "WASHINGTON - More and more people, particularly Republicans, disapprove of
President Bush's performance, question his character and no longer consider him a strong leader against terrorism, according to an AP-Ipsos poll documenting one of the bleakest points of his presidency.

Nearly four out of five Americans, including 70 percent of Republicans, believe civil war will break out in
Iraq — the bloody hot spot upon which Bush has staked his presidency. Nearly 70 percent of people say the U.S. is on the wrong track, a 6-point jump since February.

'I'm not happy with how things are going,' said Margaret Campanelli, a retiree in Norwich, Conn., who said she tends to vote Republican. 'I'm particularly not happy with Iraq, not happy with how things worked with Hurricane Katrina.'"

TGIF

Thank God It's Friday!!!! I am t.i.-ired. This week has been so taxing. I have one thing on my to-do list today. I pray that I muster up the energy to get it done.

We are 14 weeks today. Things are progressing well. All I can think about right now is rest...sleep. I took my first nap last night. After all this time...as tired as I've been...my first nap. I trick is submitting to the call of the bed. It's pretty darn hard to take a nap on your feet. I need to get into the habit of coming home and laying done in the b.e.d.. That's if I'm not hungry. Food is first in my life these days.

Let me go get myself together so I can conquer my one and only task of the day... editing a report. I'm so tired that that little task feels like I'm about to build a house in a day or something.

Oh yeah, My nephew will be competing in the National High School Indoor Track competition. Good Luck, Ant-man! See you on Sunday!

Very First Picture

I haven't been posting as frequently as I used to. Largely due to the fact that I've been extremely tired in my first trimester of pregnancy.

This is Baby's first picture! Baby was about the size of a peanut at the time. It's amazing that something so small had a heartbeat that sound like galloping horses. My husband and I are very happy about the little one. We pray everyday for Baby's perfect health and safe arrival in early September!

I know it looks like two, but it's only one. The other little thingy is the yolk sac it was living off of until it's new pad and living quarters (placenta, etc.) are complete. I hope I'll be posting more often as my energy picks up.

We will be 14 weeks on Friday! Hooray!!!! I'm going to be a mommy!

This Is 'Fully Prepared'?

This Is 'Fully Prepared'?: "By Eugene Robinson
Friday, March 3, 2006; Page A17

'I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees.'

George W. Bush said those words to Diane Sawyer last Sept. 1, when desperate people in flooded New Orleans were still being rescued from their roofs. Now we know that just four days earlier, in a videoconference briefing, one of the nation's leading hurricane experts had explicitly warned that failure of the protective levees was 'a very, very grave concern.'"

Tape: Bush, Chertoff Warned Before Katrina - Yahoo! News

Tape: Bush, Chertoff Warned Before Katrina - Yahoo! News: "By MARGARET EBRAHIM and JOHN SOLOMON, Associated Press Writers 2 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - In dramatic and sometimes agonizing terms, federal disaster officials warned
President Bush and his homeland security chief before Hurricane Katrina struck that the storm could breach levees, put lives at risk in New Orleans' Superdome and overwhelm rescuers, according to confidential video footage.

Bush didn't ask a single question during the final briefing before Katrina struck on Aug. 29, but he assured soon-to-be-battered state officials: 'We are fully prepared.'

The footage — along with seven days of transcripts of briefings obtained by The Associated Press — show in excruciating detail that while federal officials anticipated the tragedy that unfolded in New Orleans and elsewhere along the Gulf Coast, they were fatally slow to realize they had not mustered enough resources to deal with the unprecedented disaster."