Tupac Shakur

Tupac Shakur born June 16, 1971 in New York City, New York. Tupac also known as 2pac was an American rapper. He has sold over 75 million albums worldwide. This makes him one of the best-selling music artists in the world. Tupac's music is about growing up in a rough neighborhood of the violence and hardship of the ghetto, racism, other social problems, and about rivalry and conflict with other rappers. Tupac was not only known as a rapper but an actor also. He acted in different movies with different meaning and back ground. What he sings and out and movies he perform in have some similarities but they are not all violent. Tupac Shakur was shot and killed in Las Vegas, Nevada, on September 13, 1996. 

One of my favorite songs done by Tupac Shakur is "Dear Mama". This song is about Tupac's mother and the hardship she dealt with. He talks about his childhood with his mom and how it was growing up. How he made money and how he lived. He tried to help his mother in the bad economy and he explains that is his song. This song is to thank his mom and just to tell her he understands that  growing up and raising two kids while being poor was not easy but she made it. He is showing his love for his mother and all she has done for him and his sister. This is one of his best songs because we all know how hard it is for a single mother but we all thank our moms for everything they have done for us even why times were hard. This song has a lot of meaning and feeling.

One of my favorite movies that Tupac's movies that he played in was "Above the Rim." This movies is about a young boy who is trying to make it in College Basketball and one day become a Professional Basketball player. He has to make difficult and tough decisions for his basketball career.
This young boy is Kyle Lee Watson who is a young talented basketball player who is a high school senior. He is about to graduate high school and await a letter for a scholarship from Georgetown University. Waiting for this letter was not the only problem Kyle had. He creates and finds himself in a dilemma over a neighborhood tournament. He needs to chose between playing on a team for his basketball coach or for Birdie a local thug in the neighborhood who is played by Tupac Shakur. Kyle decides to play for his coach and is threatened by Birdie to lose the game. Kyle team wins the game with the help of a former player and security guard Shep who is also the brother of Birdie. They take home the championship.

Project Unbreakable

Project Unbreakable is a non-profit organization founded by Grace Brown a 20 year old girl from East Longmeadow, MA. Project unbreakable is geared to help men and women who were raped or sexually abused. Grace photographs people from all over the world. The people email her and ask her to photograph them, tell her their story and then they write it on a white poster board which says what there rapist said to them. Some people chose to show their face and some do not. As a former classmate of Grace Brown I have personally heard her story myself. At 17 she was propositioned by her grandfather. Grace started by photographing her friends that had been raped, photographing these survivors gave her the courage to get photographed herself and to come out with her own story.

One in three women and one in five men will be sexually abused in there lifetime. Fifteen out of sixteen rapists will never spend one day in jail. Follow project unbreakable on tumblr @ projectunbreakable.tumblr.com

rondo blog

 

One of the recent hot topics in the NBA is the Boston Celtics starting point guard Rajon Rondo. Rondo tore his ACL and is out for the rest of the season. Everyone from ESPN newscasters, to Celtics fans are freaking out about the injury. However, I don’t think that this will dramatically hurt the team. If anything, I think that it will help the Celtics grow and mature as a team. Up until the injury, Rondo was getting suspended, starting fights, and disrespecting the game that he “loves”. He was letting his ego and his temper get the best of him and not focusing on the best interests of the team.

The point guard is supposed to lead the team and set the tempo for the game. When your star point guard is missing game after game for stupid reasons I would imagine it would be hard to be successful. This makes him look bad as a person, and he is giving the Celtics a bed reputation. The team has a very rich history of championships, great players, and strong leaders. Rondo’s attitude towards the game is extremely disrespectful to the franchise and the league. I am a huge Celtics fan and always will be, but I think that the Celtics could go on without Rondo. Don’t get me wrong, I know he is one of the top point guards in the league, but the Celtics have players that can play well enough to make up for his absence. Jason Terry has a solid game with a good 3 point shot. Also Avery Bradley plays lock down defense. When the Celtics come together, it’s almost like rondo isn’t gone, but that’s just my opinion. Also Rondo’s name was thrown around during the trade deadline this season. No move was made because of his injury, but I think a trade might not be so bad. No one wants to see him leave the team, but I just don’t want to watch him cause unnecessary problems for the team. When all is said and done, I do believe that rondo will mature and lead the Celtics in the right direction if he is still there, but at the moment I am not a huge fan of him and his attitude.

Blog #2

Taylor Swift is an American Country-Pop star who has made a name for herself by becoming one of the most popular artists in the entire world. She was born in a small town In Pennsylvania on a Christmas tree farm.
  The music she has written and writes are about events that have actually happened to her, which makes the songs appeal to a variety of people and not just teenage girls like a lot of people say. Her experiences with boys ad different events that have happened in her life like one of her friends feeling like no one is there for them, she wrote a song called Tied Together with a smile. This is why her music appeals and she has some of the highest album sales in history for any genre or artist.
  Her album Red, which has been getting extreme record sales by selling 1.2 million copies in the first week that it was on sale. This was the fastest and most sales for her career and any for any artist in several decades. Also on iTunes there were close to half a million sold in the first ten minutes that the album was available for digital download. Many people say that only girls should listen to Taylor Swift, but some of her biggest fans can be young men, there are two songs called Taylor Swift by Tyler Dean, and Austin Kyle. The music appeals to anyone and everyone because regardless of gender there's a relation to the song. These songs have been released and became number one singles.
Her first album that was self titled had two number one hits, with "Our Song"and "Should've Said No" Then her second album sold over 500,000 copies in the first week. "You Belong With Me" and "Love Story became number on hits. These albums come from experience and things that happened in her life

  Taylor Swift left Sony Records, which is one of the largest record companies in the world, because she could not write her own music, and she joined Big Machine Records and is now their C.E.O. Her music appeals to a whole variety of people and many of her songs that are big hits get certified gold or higher,she seems to be transitioning into the pop genre of music. The roots of her musci will always be country and that is why she is the youngest artist to win entertainer of the year at the CMA awards. She has won over thirty awards for her music and will continue to because people can relate to the muscis she writes.
 http://www.npr.org/2012/11/05/164340690/taylor-swift-leaps-into-pop-with-red
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/31/red-album-sales_n_2048723.html

Top Three Underrated Rotations in the American League

I recently read an ESPN article ranking the top starting rotations in Major League Baseball. I then began to research and realized that there were some starting staffs in the American League that were not getting the love they deserved. These are three teams that I feel are primed to have big years:

American League:

3.) Chicago White Sox: This may be seen as a surprise pick to most but I believe the White Sox will have a solid rotation this year. Chris Sale is one of the best young pitchers in baseball and has already placed himself as the ace of their staff. Jake Peavy will never be what he used to but he is still an above average major league player. I expect John Danks to rebound this year and go back to his old form. Gavin Floyd and Jose Quintana are both suitable back end of the rotation guys.

2.) Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: This may be another surprise pick but I am counting on the Angels rotation to have a big year. Jered Weaver is easily a top ten pitcher in Major League Baseball and will be a stabilizing force in the rotation. C.J. Wilson under performed last year but I expect a big bounce back season. Joe Blanton is a solid veteran presence that will help younger guys. Jason Vargas is a number four pitcher on the Angels and could probably be a three on most other teams. Tommy Hanson is coming off an injury filled season and may be the best back end of the rotation pitcher in baseball.

1.) Toronto Blue Jays: The Toronto Blue Jays have a solid rotation that has been built on offseason trading. The ace of their staff is reigning National League Cy Young Award winner R.A. Dickey. Brandon Morrow looks like he finally has begun to break out and reach his potential. Mark Buehrle is a great leader and still an effective pitcher who will be a big clubhouse presence for the Jays. Josh Johnson is an injury prone pitcher but when healthy can be the number one starter on any staff. Ricky Romero had a terrible season last year but only two years ago he had a sub 3.00 era.

Iron Man

Iron Man 3 is the third installment to the Iron Man movie series. It is by far the most anticipated movie for me this up coming summer. The Iron Man series is all about a guy named Tony Stark that is the brilliant son to Howard Stark. His father, founder of Stark Enterprise, was a millionaire and known all over the world during his time from created some of the most high tech weapons and technology. After his death, his son Tony inherited the company and, just like his father, has become a world-wide sensation due to his intelligence, wealth and pure charismatic personality. In the first movie, Tony is kidnapped while on a business trip in the Middle East with the US Military. His captors demand that Tony design a missile for them called the Jericho Missile. Instead, Tony creates the Mark 1 variant of his Iron Man suit in order to escape. Once back in the US, Tony improves on his original design and creates a much more suiting Iron Man suit. In a huge press conference at the end of the first movie, Tony reveals to the public that he Iron Man. During the second movie, Tony goes through a difficult time in his life. As perfect as his life may seem from the outside, he experiences many internal conflicts both physical and mental. Not only does Tony have a life threatening disease that has the potential to kill him if he doesn't find a cure, but this brings Tony to realize his humanity. Growing up rich, powerful and world-known, he never had a chance to think about his humanity. Because of this, Tony has his moments throughout the movie that makes people rethink the fact that this is the man that owns one of the most powerful pieces of technology in the world. Tony eventually finds a cure which turns out to be the result of an unfinished project that his father was unable to complete due to the "technology of his time." He then, with the help of one of his friends in the military, defeats a Russian engineer that attempted to make his own Iron Man suit. The movie ends with Tony being expected into the "Avengers Initiative"  which is the precursor to the "Avengers" movie. Being my favorite movies, I give these movies an excellent rating and can't wait to to see the next one.  IMDb gives Iron Man a 7.9/10 calling Tony the "complete playboy".

Menace II Society

 

Growing up in the inner city Boston, MA isn't easy. Im suprised that I made it to college, because is promised or given to you where I'm from. It is a everyday struggle in the hood. So when I hit the age of 14 saw the movie "Menace II Society". It changed my life and I could relate to it in certain ways. Menace II Society is a movie about two teens that have graduate highschool and are met with the reality of life after high school. Along the way they are met with everyday problems, and the gang life in the inner city. The two main charaters are Cane (Tyrin Turner) and O-Dog (Larenz Tate). Both of these characters are best friends and grew up in the same neighborhood. Cane growing up had an awful childhood, his mother was a crack head, and his father was a small time pimp and drug dealer. Cane was exposed to a lot of things at a very young age alcohal, drugs and violence. Canes first drink was at the age of five. Then both of his parents died when he was seven. When he finally reached 18 him and O-dog began a life of crime after highschool. Can learned how to cook crack. and began wielding a gun. But one day changed his life when him and O-dog went into a liquor just expecting to get liquior when the Asian owner kept staring and checking on them to make sure they wouldnt steal. O-dog got fed up and killed everyone in the store and took the video tape. After this later that night Cane was robbed and shot but he got lucky his cousin was killed after a bullet to the head ended his life abruptly. However Cane didn't learn his lesson at all he went back to the life of crime seeking revenge. After he returned to full health him and O-dog went looking for the guys that shot him and his cousin. They found them and completely blew them away with a tech 9 and a 12 gauge shotgun. But as you know what goes around comes around, so later in the movie Cane gets killed along with some other friends. If you like movies that show tales of the hood, bloody, and full of violence then this is your movie. But it also has the reality of life, and friends that are there for you for whatever you need.