Will the last season of Star Trek: Picard ramp up to proper warp speed? — There’s something….unsettling…about the pacing of “Picard” season three. I’ll try to put a precise feeling into words. The first concern is that this season is cramming a multitude of fan service requests into the series-ending extravaganza. It feels like a vinyl record…skipping….as the record spins. These particular skips happen when…

Raised in an echo chamber of homogeneous thought, you may bristle at “ethnic stranger” interactions like it’s how you were taught. I’m seen enough times in passing to ensure facial recognition, but it never goes beyond catching awkward glances of weak imposition. Present almost every time our children practice frequently, yet your amenity is sublime like my presence is an anomaly. In pursuit of legitimate business deals using relevant credentials, yet I get insolent to hostile reactions to unfair extents.

The yin-yang of living with a passion for roller skating which is slowly falling out of style — I have grown up skating. My first experience was by way of high school roller skating parties that my mom chaperoned as a teacher. She brought my preteen self to a high school party! I thought I had cracked the code on being cool 😎. …

Recollections of films affiliated with Hollywood’s highest accolade — Have you ever found yourself daydreaming that you are the star of a movie? As you survey your current scene, you ponder the plot as it’s developed from one significant decision to a later outcome. Could you be the narrator with the engaging baritone voice (or, for the ladies, a…

Inferring neighbors' compatibility through their campaign lawn signs — Political elections are an easy way to determine the sensibilities of residents in my neighborhood towards ethnic-related issues. As a politically active African-American voter, I am concerned about the mindset of the people who live around me. People of color likely experience plenty of unreported interactions bordering on racism that…

The existential, internal debate between fun and fear of getting kicked out of the “House" — I recently attended an annual signature event that is a fundraiser for a non-profit organization I support. While the schedule included skits and a contest, a significant portion of the event was dancing. As the DJ masterfully mixed new-school slides and old-school classics, people naturally responded by rushing to the…

Don Cornelius executed a 21st-century idea in the 1970s — I’ve been in a nostalgic mood since I found a series on YouTube called “I Was A Soul Train Dancer.” These video shorts cover the backstories of particular dancers who provided atmosphere each week on a Soul Train episode’s party scene. This TV series portrayed African-American youth as lively, carefree…

To some, African-Americans are considered a threat, but to us, the system’s actors are the monsters. — It’s happened…again. Another “Black trauma” porn national moment surfaced when “we” as a nation are appalled to see the inhumanity displayed by supposed officers of the law sworn to “protect and serve”. Tyre Nichols was a twenty-something, African-American U.S. citizen who was brutally attacked for almost an hour by a…

Throwback to the tension of being a dutiful son — I was browsing YouTube looking for…something related to my recent experience with my fraternity’s Founders Day. I stumbled across a clip from a Gary Owen comedy show as I searched. For those unfamiliar with Owen, he is one of the few Caucasian comedians who can enthrall a predominantly Black audience…