Ghetto Slang/Ghetto Style

After accepting a job in South Central Los Angeles a few months ago, I expected to be learning cool, new, inner-city slang all the time. I've been rather disappointed, however. The only new slang term I've heard was from a library clerk who used the term "booty" to describe a bully or bullying.

My best source of African-American slang remains my friend, Rene LaMour, and her son, Sampson. Here are a couple of my favorite Rene phrases:

I was to' up or
I was to' up from the flo' up (That's Tore up from the floor up to all you caucasians)

I was too through

Sampson of course introduced me to the adjective tight to describe something "cool" a few years ago. Tight still seems to be in use because a teen at the library described my glittery, Chinese shoes as tight the other day.


One day a few weeks ago, a teenager came into the library who had a different style than the rest of the kids. He had a super-sized skateboard and a light-colored Afro with three hair picks stuck into it. A little girl said to her friends, "Ooh look. Three hair picks. That's the new style."

I wonder if the three-hair-picks-in-a-fro style will overtake the Allen Iverson-style braids that are popular among some of the boys. Let me know if you spot anyone with this look.

Aardvark? Bullshit!

There is a series of children's books (and apparently a PBS show) about a character named Arthur by Marc Brown that I believed was supposed to be a mouse. However, yesterday my co-workers who have children informed me that Arthur is an aardvark. (I wondered why those kids in the library looked at me funny when I asked them if they wanted the Arthur books about the chimpanzee or the Arthur books about the mouse)

I cannot accept that Arthur is an aardvark since he has no nose. About the most distinguishing feature of an aardvark I can think of is its nose. It has a long nose it uses to catch termites or ants in their holes or whatever.

My co-worker says Arthur used to look more like an aardvark. Here are two versions of Arthur I found online. One has a longer face which looks a little more like an aardvark.

Why is everyone buying into this CHARADE???






Below is a real aardvark.

Oldlyweds

TK and I had our first wedding anniversary yesterday, so we can't call ourselves newlyweds anymore.

If you ever want to get in good with Mun Mun, be like TK and give me a customized box of See's candy with half Maple Pecan Bon Bons and half Molasses Chips (Dark Chocolate). The benefit to you will be significant.

Hey Ya

TK discovered the website MetaFilter. Check it daily to fulfill your daily fun quota. Here's an acoustic version of the Outkast song "Hey Ya," I found out about on MetaFilter.

Spelling Songs We Forgot

TK and I have been compiling a list of spellings songs which I posted a ways back.

We forgot to list L-O-V-E (sung by Nat King Cole).

While watching the stupid-and-offensive-but-quite-amusing film The Ringer, we discovered a musical group of disabled young folks, The Kids of Widney High, who perform in the film. They have a song called E-L-V-I-S!

Anybody know of more spelling songs?

MungBeing Again

Mun Mun has some art published in this month's issue of the online magazine, MungBeing. The issue's theme is "The Mind." Check it out. I'm on page 49.

Rest In Peace, Bret Falk

I got an email today saying that Bret Falk, one of the founders of my TightCircle, Horns, died. Here's a link to my favorite cartoon by Bret that appeared in The Pelican, UC Berkeley's humor magazine.

Oh,what the hell. I'll post the cartoon without permission.

Library Haikus

Margaret had a haiku contest at Carnivorous Nights' Haiku Zoo on the theme of cryptozoology the other month. It gave me the idea to run a little haiku contest at the liberry where I work for the chill'un. I put out the entry forms and a sign out yesterday. I hope the kids write some good haiku.

These were the examples I put out:

Have you been waiting
For Harry Potter Seven?
Prepare to wait more

It's too hot to play
Why not open a good book
about Elephants?

Monsy's Zen Garden

My high school English/Journalism teacher, Montserrat Fontes, used to keep a zen garden on her desk in her classroom where she kept a rolled up dollar, out in the open. I guess it was one way she showed her students that she trusted them. I was playing with the idea of doing something similar in the public library where I work to build a feeling of trust with the kids. Then, I remembered, all the kids know where are cars are parked. Good enough.

Evilkins

One nickname for my cat, Inkblot, is Miss Evilkins because she likes to attack my other peace-loving cat, Milo. TK tells me that Inkblot only does this when I'm in the apartment, so I think the fighting must be associated with territoriality over me. (Inkblot is extremely attached to me.) I woke up this morning with an aphorism in my head -

The love of Mun Mun is the root of all evilkins.