The New School

"Lookin' in the mirror, I thank God for what I'm 'bout to be..." -ICY GRL, Saweetie




Yesterday marked a year since I graduated from high school. Tomorrow makes a year since my very first blog post. Those of you that have been here the entire ride, I'd like to say thank you. You've seen me discover myself in the rawest forms and while some of the posts have been taken down, they are not completely eradicated from the site and someday (when I'm ready), they will be back up.

I've taken a lot of losses since my high school graduation, but I've also accomplished a good bit of things. While I'm so proud of everyone graduating and going on to college or the work force, the church, wherever life takes you all, remember that it's okay if everything does not always go as planned.

Everyone says that, yet no one prepares you for the absolute worst case scenarios. Just be mindful of the changes that will happen in your inner circle, the confusion you will feel stepping into new adulthood, etc. Understand that you needn't let pride get in the way. Ask for help when it's necessary, and do not suffer in silence.

Still, remain optimistic about everything that is happening in your life. Love you, bees. Congratulations.

-Dree

911

"This a celly. That's a tool. On my Kodak (BLACK!), ooooo know that!" -Childish Gambino, This is America

"America. God bless you if it's good to ya..." -Kendrick Lamar feat. U2, XXX

"Rich white man rule the nation still. Only difference is we all slaves now, the chains still concealed in our thoughts..." -J. Cole, Runaway

"Her white friends said, 'You niggas crazy.' I hope no one heard that. I hope no one heard that 'cause if they did, we gone be in some trouble..."-Drake, Marvin's Room

You Can Be Educated

You Can Be Traveling

You Can Be Discussing Business

Understand this. There are people with bad intentions. There are people with good intentions. There are people that do not give a fuck. There are people who give many fucks. The ignorance it takes to generalize a group of people as being one way all the time is saddening. Would I walk down a dark alley with ten men in the middle of the night? No. If I saw those same ten men in the mall, would I call the police on them just for being there? No. Common sense says that yes, some circumstances cause red flags and should be avoided because "Why take the chance?". Common sense also says that fears can be irrational. Common sense explains the difference; your problematic thought processes do not. Stop the madness.

What I Love and Hate About Atlanta (Spoilers for Season 2)

"Too late. You wanna make it right, but now it's too late..." -Redbone, Childish Gambino

Yo, so after tonight's episode of  "Atlanta," I'm really tired of fangirling over it to only two people, and since I have a final tomorrow, I'm trying to procrastinate crying. There will be spoilers, and no this is not a typical blog post from me, but who's going to whoop my ass the way Tracy did Earn's this episode? (I was going to call myself a pacifist as a disclaimer that I'm not challenging anyone to a fight, but that word literally means someone doesn't believe in war, which I do, so now I don't have a name for myself and feel dumb for mislabeling all these years.)





Now then, let's get started.

I love the fact that Earn is the main character (one of the three, but like he's the main-main), yet for once there's a character in a lead that isn't all "Yeah, I'm perfect and more developed than everyone else." Nope, they're all f*cked up, which is why I enjoy looking at their chemistry on-screen. There's just an astounding level of authenticity. Like we all know somebody strikingly similar to each of them. Speaking of effed up, let's talk about Van because the "Champagne Papi" episode is what officially wrote her off for me.

How the hell do you leave your high friend by herself at a party? I was so scared for what could've happened the entire goddamn time. Van is just so annoying. I'm looking forward to seeing the actress that plays her in Deadpool because I really want to see her as a character I possibly won't resent. At least we know she's doing her job because I don't think there's a way to make Van likable. For one thing, her and Earn both a little stupid, so we all know their child is going to be a little...



She's just not going to be the brightest crayon in the box. She won't even be Crayolas. Straight Rosearts. Poor, poor creature.

Anyway Van is the biggest hypocrite on the show, and that's saying something. Sis always preaching about being a good example for Lotti, yet she doesn't accomplish anything in any episode. Every episode she's in becomes a random "People belittle the fact I'm more than Earn's baby mama" dialogue but she was too stupid to efficiently get some piss for her drug test. She expects Paper Boi, an entire drug dealer, to be a good example for her child, yet she can't even stop lurking on Earn's Snapchat long enough to be a decent friend or mother. 1+1=5? Sh*t don't add up. I was glad she Love and Ping-Ponged Earn so that they can officially stop pretending they work well together because they highkey just don't. (And why the f*ck did we just find out she's from Germany?)

Darius had my entire heart until he literally put his foot in some pasta he was cooking. That just...we're done. All in all, I love his consistency. Honestly, I love all the characters' consistency. They don't switch up, which I guess some people would equate to them not really growing, but I disagree. I really think they're going at a pace that's normal for most people.




It also doesn't hurt that Lakeith is a snacc.

Now then, the most predictable thing about this season was the fact that Earn was going to get fired as Paper Boi's manager, and it happened. I knew it would happen. Anybody with eyes and ears knew it was going to happen. Earn thirsty-for-a-partial-come-up facea*ss does not know how to execute plans. He literally ran into decent money at least twice this season, yet the storage where he was living got repossessed. Homie decided to ball out because he was tired of being "shitted on," not realizing he would feel the exact same way episodes later when he had to hit that concrete because Paper Boi's apartment had an unexpected guest. This guest was Tracy. Tracy is the ultimate nigga of Niggadom. Like after you beat all the gym shorts, 2K, I-Smoke-Blacks-Daily niggas, you have to defeat Tracy as the final boss.



He wore a durag to a job interview.

He's mad annoying. Like I know he's the type of person I would have so much anxiety around as well as relentless irritation, so I understood when Earn was like



"pUlL oVeR, i WanNA bEaT dIs nIGga aSs."

I knew Earn wouldn't just necessarily whoop ass like talm 'bout, buuuuuut I was expecting at least one lick. I honestly like when Earn is mad. I feel like he's a Libra, and so they always try to have this fake insouciance and a nonchalant type of vibe. To see him kicking doors and pulling fire alarms and trying to fight was refreshing. Like, yes, get mad. I know you mad. Baby moms won't let you kick it, you homeless, you just got fired from a job you barely had to begin with; I know you mad.

Anyway, I still have work to do, so I'm going to go ahead and wrap this up. On a final note, I'm mad that PaperBoi thinks he can still maintain the same lifestyle while being Paper Boi. I like that about him though. He wants to remain authentic because he's making business personal and not understanding a brand is just that: a brand. I look forward to seeing his inevitable growth, though. After all, the show is really about him.



Disclaimers: Yes, I know it's a scripted show, which is why I spoke about the characters, not the actual actors portraying them. I did not create and do not own any of the images. No copyright infringement is intended by the use of them.

Goodnight, y'all.