Ackee and Saltfish by Cecile Emeke

I discovered the web series Ackee and Saltfish from a visit to the Manrepeller website. After watching the featured episode "The Lauryn Hill Tickets" (see below) I had to watch more. Thus leading to me having to feature it on IWTH. The creator, Cecile Emeke was featured in The New York Times. The series "documents" the everyday lives of two friends and the bantering and realism of their conversation is hilarious. The concept of ordinary people having something to say - and worth being heard - is a concept that is rarely observed in television in the US. Of course television is normally scripted (as is the web series) but the situations are rather extreme and often times you wonder "Who actually does this?". The simplicity of the series of extremely enjoyable, so feel free to preview below:

Hope you laughed as much as I did, and look at the other videos on YouTube.

Diversity in Debates

(One of my favorite discussions was "Contemporary Art Excludes the 99%" - Listen in Soundcloud)

I'm a huge fan of Intelligence Squared debates. At work sometimes I listen to them on Soundcloud and they help keep me motivated - and during dull times entertained. And as I listen and listen to many podcasts, I couldn't really help but notice a trend: in a panel of four, three are men and one is a woman; especially in the debates held in America.

Review: The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles

(Photo found in Tumblr. I was a bit lazy and didn't feel like photographing my own book)

I finally read/finished The Wind-Up Bird Chronicles by Haruki Murakami. I know I took a really long hiatus from the novel, but I just couldn't help myself. At the time I started reading the book, I was in a state of mind that was not quite ready for a book so mind-bending. It wasn't the style of story I was accustomed to reading, and so I found it slightly difficult to continue. I was also at university - struggling through courses - and was already rather tired and unstable. The Murakami novel was only making my mind more messed up. So I dropped it, and finally this year I was able to finish it. I even have the commemorative date on my Instagram account as evidence. Yes. Yes, I did read all of it. And no, I never skipped to the last paragraph. I felt like an adult!

Reading List of 2015

If I excused myself for my absence (again), I doubt anyone would be listening at this point. So, I think I'll just plow on - as always - with the assumption that everyone and no one is listening.

Becoming Conscious

I have thought about the responsibilities I have as a human being to myself, to my species, and to the rest of the planet that I inhabit. It seems to me that the world appears to be in great - and perhaps at times, endless - turmoil. Turn on the news and you quickly hear of killings, robberies, and wars. But there are also truths we rarely see (especially here in the United States, with the media being so selective of what it portrays) and realities far more gruesome than we may like to acknowledge.