Please play this song at my funeral. That's all I ask. Ok, maybe that's not all I ask. I also ask that everyone dances and has a blast. And everyone must have a brown bag 40oz beer of their choice. Or some local San Diego beer from Lost Abbey or Ballast Point. But no Stone. Fuck Stone. Shit's overrated as all hell. And the people that work there are douchebags for the most part. And I don't even like the word "douchebag," but I'm gonna use it here because it fits.
-- Blue Collar Gangster Lean
Wednesday, May 30, 2012
Monday, May 21, 2012
Treyvon Martin Didn't Deserve To Die
That's the bottom line. I don't know why America is still so disgustingly racist that they feel the need to defend a murderer like George Zimmerman, but the facts are the facts: We as a country are still extremely racist. And the sad part is we're going to continue to be that way for a very long time to come. It makes no sense to me. But I blame the parents more than anything. If you grew up in a family of Ku Klux Klan members you'd most likely grow up to be a Klan member yourself. Or if you were raised a vegetarian you'd probably view eating filet mignon as a wrongful act. Or if you came from a family of religious zealots you'd unfortunately grow up thinking that all gay people are going to hell. I don't pigeonhole myself when it comes to political parties and stances, so it's easy for me to poke fun at those that do. But I don't want to create enemies for no reason either, so I try not to be too offensive and immediately turn off an enormous group of people. At any rate, I was fortunate enough to grow up in a very diverse environment between the schools that I attended, the friendships I made, the situations I put myself in, etc. Because of this I learned one enormous fact and invaluable life lesson: There are good and bad people of all colors. There are worthless white people. There are great white people. There are scumbag Asian people. There are incredible Asian people. There are shitty black people. There are amazing black people.
You get my point.
Here are the facts: Treyvon Martin was killed on February 26th, 2012. George Zimmerman followed him around his neighborhood into an apartment complex even when the dispatcher advised him not to do so. As a result of Zimmerman's racial profiling {call it what you want} a young man's life is lost and his family continues to mourn. It doesn't matter what happened after the pursuit began. It doesn't matter if Treyvon threw the first punch or called Zimmerman names or even if he said he had intercourse with his mom {I made all those things up, by the way}. It doesn't matter. That's entirely irrelevant. What matters is that a life is now lost forever for nothing. For no good fucking reason at all. Zimmerman never saw Treyvon commit a robbery. He never saw Treyvon steal a car. He never saw Treyvon abuse a woman. George Zimmerman never saw Trayvon Martin do anything outside of walking around his neighborhood to purchase some skittles and a drink for himself and a friend/family member {in other words "look suspicious"}. And now he's gone. For what? And why? Should it be okay to get a suspicion about someone that's merely walking the streets and then go follow him and ultimately kill him even though he was innocent the entire time? Because that's what happened. And it makes me sick to see all the comments and posts people are making on the television and the internet defending what George Zimmerman did. They're saying he's innocent. That he was "defending himself." Essentially what they're saying is that Treyvon Martin deserved to die that night. It's ridiculous. It's absolutely sickening, revolting, and flat out ridiculous. How would you react if someone was following you in their car late at night and then approached you asking what you were doing? Zimmerman already made up his mind that he was following a criminal. He approached Treyvon Martin as such. How would you feel? Would you be kind and understanding? Would you explain that you were merely buying some Skittles for a family member or a friend? Or would you be angry as fuck and want to hurt the person that had been following you in his car at night with the high beams on for the last 20 minutes and scaring the shit out of you?
No matter what your reaction may have been, at the end of the day Treyvon Martin is dead and he didn't deserve to die. Call it racial, call it a misunderstanding, call it what you will. A life is lost and it didn't need to happen. George Zimmerman is to blame for an innocent life lost. Treyvon Martin is dead because of an overzealous, trigger happy Paul Blart Mall Cop/Seth Rogan in Observe & Report scumbag motherfucker trying to play cops & robbers in real life. Taking an innocent life is not a game. And what happened in this case will hopefully open a lot of eyes to the kind of things that still happen in our country on a daily basis. This case says a lot about how severe the problem of racism still remains in America and I can only hope we can learn from this. Privileged white people love to say that racism doesn't exist and they often cite having a black president as a major example of proving said statement. The fact is -- and anyone with a brain can attest to this -- electing a black president has in a lot of ways only acted as a blanket to cover up just how prevalent racism still is in our country. I was born and raised in San Diego, and most people will tell you that they consider our city to be one of the most liberal places to live in the good ol' U.S. of A. If that's true I'm even more scared about the current state of America. I never thought I'd see so much racism in San Diego till I started working in North County five years ago. I felt like I was in Mississippi the first month I was there. To hear the way people so nonchalantly made racist comments and summarily dismissed anyone that wasn't white as being obviously inferior, it really shocked and disgusted me. It still does. It always will. And it really woke me up to how enormous of a problem racism still is in our country. We all have to take it upon ourselves to change it. We have to raise our kids the right way and show them that color doesn't define who is good and bad. We have to put people in their place when they make bigoted comments. If we don't, who will? Martin Luther King can't. He was assassinated. Malcolm X can't. He was also assassinated. So who's going to step up and do their part in making this world a better place for all of us? Stop looking around for someone else to raise their hand. Raise your own hand and start making a difference right now.
-- Christopher Lane Johnson
You get my point.
Here are the facts: Treyvon Martin was killed on February 26th, 2012. George Zimmerman followed him around his neighborhood into an apartment complex even when the dispatcher advised him not to do so. As a result of Zimmerman's racial profiling {call it what you want} a young man's life is lost and his family continues to mourn. It doesn't matter what happened after the pursuit began. It doesn't matter if Treyvon threw the first punch or called Zimmerman names or even if he said he had intercourse with his mom {I made all those things up, by the way}. It doesn't matter. That's entirely irrelevant. What matters is that a life is now lost forever for nothing. For no good fucking reason at all. Zimmerman never saw Treyvon commit a robbery. He never saw Treyvon steal a car. He never saw Treyvon abuse a woman. George Zimmerman never saw Trayvon Martin do anything outside of walking around his neighborhood to purchase some skittles and a drink for himself and a friend/family member {in other words "look suspicious"}. And now he's gone. For what? And why? Should it be okay to get a suspicion about someone that's merely walking the streets and then go follow him and ultimately kill him even though he was innocent the entire time? Because that's what happened. And it makes me sick to see all the comments and posts people are making on the television and the internet defending what George Zimmerman did. They're saying he's innocent. That he was "defending himself." Essentially what they're saying is that Treyvon Martin deserved to die that night. It's ridiculous. It's absolutely sickening, revolting, and flat out ridiculous. How would you react if someone was following you in their car late at night and then approached you asking what you were doing? Zimmerman already made up his mind that he was following a criminal. He approached Treyvon Martin as such. How would you feel? Would you be kind and understanding? Would you explain that you were merely buying some Skittles for a family member or a friend? Or would you be angry as fuck and want to hurt the person that had been following you in his car at night with the high beams on for the last 20 minutes and scaring the shit out of you?
No matter what your reaction may have been, at the end of the day Treyvon Martin is dead and he didn't deserve to die. Call it racial, call it a misunderstanding, call it what you will. A life is lost and it didn't need to happen. George Zimmerman is to blame for an innocent life lost. Treyvon Martin is dead because of an overzealous, trigger happy Paul Blart Mall Cop/Seth Rogan in Observe & Report scumbag motherfucker trying to play cops & robbers in real life. Taking an innocent life is not a game. And what happened in this case will hopefully open a lot of eyes to the kind of things that still happen in our country on a daily basis. This case says a lot about how severe the problem of racism still remains in America and I can only hope we can learn from this. Privileged white people love to say that racism doesn't exist and they often cite having a black president as a major example of proving said statement. The fact is -- and anyone with a brain can attest to this -- electing a black president has in a lot of ways only acted as a blanket to cover up just how prevalent racism still is in our country. I was born and raised in San Diego, and most people will tell you that they consider our city to be one of the most liberal places to live in the good ol' U.S. of A. If that's true I'm even more scared about the current state of America. I never thought I'd see so much racism in San Diego till I started working in North County five years ago. I felt like I was in Mississippi the first month I was there. To hear the way people so nonchalantly made racist comments and summarily dismissed anyone that wasn't white as being obviously inferior, it really shocked and disgusted me. It still does. It always will. And it really woke me up to how enormous of a problem racism still is in our country. We all have to take it upon ourselves to change it. We have to raise our kids the right way and show them that color doesn't define who is good and bad. We have to put people in their place when they make bigoted comments. If we don't, who will? Martin Luther King can't. He was assassinated. Malcolm X can't. He was also assassinated. So who's going to step up and do their part in making this world a better place for all of us? Stop looking around for someone else to raise their hand. Raise your own hand and start making a difference right now.
-- Christopher Lane Johnson
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Killer Mike w/ El-P - Reagan (Produced by El-P of Company Flow)
Pretty amazing stuff right here, folks. Killer Mike and EL-P just released this gem of an album entitled 'R.A.P. Music' and I strongly suggest any hip hop fan add this to their collection immediately. Every song is wonderful. These guys really know how to put together an album and not just a collection of songs. Controversial, insightful, angry, rebellious, and just straight up solid from front to back. How many albums can you pop in and press play without ever wanting to skip a track? Not too many, right? Well here's your medicine. Take it and smile. A real breath of fresh air to a genre that really needed something fresh. And pick up EL-P's solo album 'Cancer4Cure' while you're at it. I just saw him perform 'Stay Down' on Letterman the other day. Big things for independent hip hop.
Support important music from passionate artists that truly care about making good music first and foremost over album sales and ring tones. If you build it, they will come. Well these guys just built a classic album some come and get it. And no, it's not too early to call this album a classic. Buy and you'll see for yourselves.
Support important music from passionate artists that truly care about making good music first and foremost over album sales and ring tones. If you build it, they will come. Well these guys just built a classic album some come and get it. And no, it's not too early to call this album a classic. Buy and you'll see for yourselves.
Sunday, May 13, 2012
To The Mother Of My Children And Love Of My Life
Thank you for your unconditional love and your unwavering support. This year hasn't been an easy one and it's not even halfway over. At times I felt like I'd never be the same person again due to a few events that took place. And maybe I won't be the same person ever again. But there's two ways to look at it. I could say, "I can't wait for this year to be over so I can start fresh in 2013." Or I can say, "The next eight months I'm going to rebuild myself into the strongest person I've ever been." With you by my side through all of this, I know I can do anything and that's why I'm choosing the better option. I can accomplish my goals without fear or doubt. Fear is self-sabotage, and we all can be guilty of it from time to time. We listen when people shut down our ideas. We second guess ourselves until all that remains is a beaten down shell where an optimist used to reside. Instead of letting fear control us we have to believe in what we're passionate about. People are scared of the unknown, and they're scared of what they can't do or what they feel they can't do. And as a result of that fear those same people want to bring you down with them because they feel weaker when they watch someone succeed. They'll never bring us down. Our family is too strong.
I've said this many times and I'll continue to say it because quite simply, it's true: I'm extremely blessed. I'm blessed to have such a wonderful family that has my back without question. I'm blessed to have found such a strong, intelligent and beautiful woman to hold my hand and stand by my side through some of the toughest, most challenging times of my life. Most women would've quit long ago. People do it everyday. But she never did. She never quit me. She never walked away from what we have. And because of that I feel like she never will. But I refuse to take advantage of that and I refuse to take her for granted. At times I feel like she deserves better than me. But she loves me so much that I know she disagrees. And I love her the same way she loves me. I always will. They say the only thing constant in life is change. I'm here to say that my love for Diannica Tidwell Johnson will never change. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it will change. But if it does, I can promise you that the only change will be that my love will continue to grow for her. Our bond will only become stronger over time. I met her in 2001. I had just turned twenty-one years old. Most people would've enjoyed being single and hitting the bars and clubs and not bother with relationships or they'd say something stupid like, "I don't wanna get tied down by a woman." That thought never crossed my mind the day I met Diannica.
The fact is, the day I met you Diannica, I knew my life would change forever. And I was right. That's the day God blessed me and that's the day God started the creation of our beautiful family together. I love you so much and I wouldn't change a thing if I could. Thank you.
Happy Mother's Day,
-- Christopher Lane Johnson
I've said this many times and I'll continue to say it because quite simply, it's true: I'm extremely blessed. I'm blessed to have such a wonderful family that has my back without question. I'm blessed to have found such a strong, intelligent and beautiful woman to hold my hand and stand by my side through some of the toughest, most challenging times of my life. Most women would've quit long ago. People do it everyday. But she never did. She never quit me. She never walked away from what we have. And because of that I feel like she never will. But I refuse to take advantage of that and I refuse to take her for granted. At times I feel like she deserves better than me. But she loves me so much that I know she disagrees. And I love her the same way she loves me. I always will. They say the only thing constant in life is change. I'm here to say that my love for Diannica Tidwell Johnson will never change. But maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it will change. But if it does, I can promise you that the only change will be that my love will continue to grow for her. Our bond will only become stronger over time. I met her in 2001. I had just turned twenty-one years old. Most people would've enjoyed being single and hitting the bars and clubs and not bother with relationships or they'd say something stupid like, "I don't wanna get tied down by a woman." That thought never crossed my mind the day I met Diannica.
The fact is, the day I met you Diannica, I knew my life would change forever. And I was right. That's the day God blessed me and that's the day God started the creation of our beautiful family together. I love you so much and I wouldn't change a thing if I could. Thank you.
Happy Mother's Day,
-- Christopher Lane Johnson
Friday, May 4, 2012
Are You Too Tough To Say I Love You? No. You're Too Weak.
First off, Rest In Peace to Adam Yauch aka MCA of The Beastie Boys. Since 2009 he'd been battling the vicious and indiscriminatory disease that is cancer. He'll never be forgotten as his music and personality and numerous philanthropical ventures will always be remembered and continue to live on. He was 47.
And that's why I'm here typing this right now. I'm here today to say something so simple yet so difficult and often overlooked: Tell your loved ones how much they mean to you. Tell them right now. Call them. Send them an email if it's easier. It's the thought that matters. They say it's not what you say but how you say it. Well, that's not entirely true. The truth is, as long as you genuinely mean what you say you're golden. So if you're not gonna mean it, don't even bother saying it. As adults we come to realize that on any given day we can perish. But we tend to forget that from time to time. So we end up taking things for granted. We take our relationships for granted. We take our marriages for granted. We take our lifelong friendships for granted. We even take our children for granted. But here's what I know: I'm 31 years old and in the best shape of my life. 31 seems young enough, right? But think about the millions of people that weren't fortunate enough to make it to 31. Or to 21. Or even to their first birthday. Very sad, right? Stop crying, pussy. Smile and thank whatever God you believe in and take advantage of your time on this Earth. If you don't believe in God thank yourself because obviously you're more powerful than any other human being ever to walk the Earth and you're the only reason you're here today. It's not your parents. It's not their parents. It's not the dinosaurs or the cavemen or anything else that helped you get here today. It's you. You're almighty, Bruce. So thank yourself. And I should thank you, too. But I won't. Because you're stupid. Just kidding. Kind of.
Tangent over. Bottom line: Make a difference. We're all more than capable of doing exactly that. None of us are so weak and unintelligent that we aren't worth the time of day. Time is truly of the essence, folks. It's the most valuable thing you can give someone. Especially a stranger. You can argue that love is more valuable when dealing with family; but love is given through time. If you never see your loved ones, how much love are you really giving them? If you live in a different city or a different state or harder yet, a different country, you have to give them your time in a different way. Seeing them is too costly. You obviously should do everything you can to travel to them or to have them travel to you, but I understand that times are tough all over and it's easier said than done. So give them a ring on the old telephone if like to keep things old school style. Shoot them a text message if you're feeling kinda lazy. Fire off an email right quick if you're a better writer than you are a talker. Or if you wanna show off how much weight you've lost while telling them how much you love them double click on that Skype icon on your desktop and Skype the living shit out of 'em. It'll put a huge smile on their face, I promise. It'll mean the world to them. Imagine how great it would feel if your son just sent you a text saying how much he loves you and how grateful he is that you're his father. If you don't have kids yet, imagine how great it would make you feel if your mother or father or grandpa or uncle sent you a text saying how special you are and how much better their life is because of you. If you can look me in the eyes and honestly say that it wouldn't do shit for your soul to have a loved one tell you these things, go ahead and do the world a favor: Find a bridge and jump off. I mean, don't do that. But honestly man, don't be an idiot. Have a heart. It doesn't make you a pansy. In fact, it makes you more of a man than you currently are if you can learn to tell someone you love them. Improve yourself now. Don't wait till tomorrow. Do it now. Because after all... we're not even promised tomorrow.
I love all of you guys. Everyone that's reading this right now, and everyone I've ever met and spoken to on a personal level: You've all made a difference in my life. Even if you've only had a negative impact on me, I still thank you. The reason being: I turn negatives into positives. In other words, you literally can not fuck with me. So thank you to everyone that's helped me grow as a person. I truly hope I can do the same for you someday.
-- Christopher Lane Johnson
And that's why I'm here typing this right now. I'm here today to say something so simple yet so difficult and often overlooked: Tell your loved ones how much they mean to you. Tell them right now. Call them. Send them an email if it's easier. It's the thought that matters. They say it's not what you say but how you say it. Well, that's not entirely true. The truth is, as long as you genuinely mean what you say you're golden. So if you're not gonna mean it, don't even bother saying it. As adults we come to realize that on any given day we can perish. But we tend to forget that from time to time. So we end up taking things for granted. We take our relationships for granted. We take our marriages for granted. We take our lifelong friendships for granted. We even take our children for granted. But here's what I know: I'm 31 years old and in the best shape of my life. 31 seems young enough, right? But think about the millions of people that weren't fortunate enough to make it to 31. Or to 21. Or even to their first birthday. Very sad, right? Stop crying, pussy. Smile and thank whatever God you believe in and take advantage of your time on this Earth. If you don't believe in God thank yourself because obviously you're more powerful than any other human being ever to walk the Earth and you're the only reason you're here today. It's not your parents. It's not their parents. It's not the dinosaurs or the cavemen or anything else that helped you get here today. It's you. You're almighty, Bruce. So thank yourself. And I should thank you, too. But I won't. Because you're stupid. Just kidding. Kind of.
Tangent over. Bottom line: Make a difference. We're all more than capable of doing exactly that. None of us are so weak and unintelligent that we aren't worth the time of day. Time is truly of the essence, folks. It's the most valuable thing you can give someone. Especially a stranger. You can argue that love is more valuable when dealing with family; but love is given through time. If you never see your loved ones, how much love are you really giving them? If you live in a different city or a different state or harder yet, a different country, you have to give them your time in a different way. Seeing them is too costly. You obviously should do everything you can to travel to them or to have them travel to you, but I understand that times are tough all over and it's easier said than done. So give them a ring on the old telephone if like to keep things old school style. Shoot them a text message if you're feeling kinda lazy. Fire off an email right quick if you're a better writer than you are a talker. Or if you wanna show off how much weight you've lost while telling them how much you love them double click on that Skype icon on your desktop and Skype the living shit out of 'em. It'll put a huge smile on their face, I promise. It'll mean the world to them. Imagine how great it would feel if your son just sent you a text saying how much he loves you and how grateful he is that you're his father. If you don't have kids yet, imagine how great it would make you feel if your mother or father or grandpa or uncle sent you a text saying how special you are and how much better their life is because of you. If you can look me in the eyes and honestly say that it wouldn't do shit for your soul to have a loved one tell you these things, go ahead and do the world a favor: Find a bridge and jump off. I mean, don't do that. But honestly man, don't be an idiot. Have a heart. It doesn't make you a pansy. In fact, it makes you more of a man than you currently are if you can learn to tell someone you love them. Improve yourself now. Don't wait till tomorrow. Do it now. Because after all... we're not even promised tomorrow.
I love all of you guys. Everyone that's reading this right now, and everyone I've ever met and spoken to on a personal level: You've all made a difference in my life. Even if you've only had a negative impact on me, I still thank you. The reason being: I turn negatives into positives. In other words, you literally can not fuck with me. So thank you to everyone that's helped me grow as a person. I truly hope I can do the same for you someday.
-- Christopher Lane Johnson
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