Posted in Celebration, Holiday Celebration!!, On The Radar

What to Watch on Turkey Day?-TV and Film Watchlist

Whether you have a Thanksgiving routine with your family or want to start some new traditions check out this Turkey Day watch list…

Network Television

  • Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade [8:30 AM- 12:00 PM/ET, on NBC]
  • The 2023 National Dog Show [12:00 PM/ET on NBC]
  • Green Bay Packers vs. Detroit Lions [12:30 PM/ET on FOX]
  • Washington Commanders vs. Dallas Cowboys [4:30 PM/ET on CBS]
  • San Francisco 49ers vs. Seattle Seahawks [8:20 PM/ET on NBC]

Streaming Networks

**Netflix

  • Rustin: Activist Bayard Rustin faces racism and homophobia as he helps change the course of Civil Rights history by orchestrating the 1963 March on Washington.
  • Best. Christmas. Ever!: After a twist of fate brings their families together for Christmas, Charlotte sets out to prove her old friend Jackie’s life is too good to be true.
  • The Killer: After a fateful near miss, an assassin battles his employers — and himself — on an international hunt for retribution he insists isn’t personal.
  • Leo: A coming-of-age musical comedy about the last year of elementary school as seen through the eyes of a class pet.

**Hulu

  • The League: The dynamic journey of Negro League baseball’s triumphs and challenges is told through previously unearthed archival footage and interviews with legendary players.
  • Quiz Lady: A hilarious and heartfelt comedy starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh as estranged sisters forced to cover their mother’s gambling debts, set out to get the cash the only way they know how – by turning Anne (Awkwafina) into a bona-fide gameshow champion.
  • Season 5-Fargo: In this anthology series inspired by the 1996 film, each season follows a mostly new cast of characters who get involved with murder investigations in different Midwestern towns, with seemingly unrelated crimes sometimes being connected in some way.

**Disney+

  • Dashing Through the Snow: After a traumatic experience, Eddie Garrick, a social worker, no longer believes in the magic of Christmas. At the request of his estranged wife, he brings his daughter Charlotte to work where a magical adventure begins for them.
  • The Naughty Nine: Mischievous fifth grader Andy finds himself without a visit or presents from Santa on Christmas morning. Realizing he must have landed on the “naughty list” and feeling unfairly maligned, Andy pulls together a team of eight other “naughty listers” to help him execute an elaborate heist at the North Pole to get the presents they feel they deserve. Along the way, the group comes to realize that the very best way off the naughty list is to redirect their unique talents for good — instead of mischief.
  • Season 2-Loki: The second season of the American television series Loki, based on Marvel Comics featuring the character of the same name, sees Loki working with Mobius M. Mobius, Hunter B-15, and other members of the Time Variance Authority (TVA) to navigate the multiverse in order to find Sylvie, Ravonna Renslayer, and Miss Minutes. 

**Max

  • Blue Beetle: Jaime Reyes suddenly finds himself in possession of an ancient relic of alien biotechnology called the Scarab. When the Scarab chooses Jaime to be its symbiotic host, he’s bestowed with an incredible suit of armor that’s capable of extraordinary and unpredictable powers, forever changing his destiny as he becomes the superhero Blue Beetle.
  • The Gilded Age: The Gilded Age follows a young woman who moves in with her old-money aunts and quickly gets entangled in the social war between them and their new-money neighbors. In a world on the brink of the modern age, will she follow the rules of society or forge her own path?
  • Rebuilding Black Wall Street: A six-part docu-series focusing on the ongoing reconstruction of the Greenwood District of Tulsa, which was destroyed in the 1921 massacre.

**Paramount +

  • Good Burger 2: Dexter Reed and cashier Ed reunite at fast-food restaurant Good Burger with a hilarious new group of employees.
  • Lawmen: Bass Reeves: American Western television series based on the life of the first African American Deputy U.S. Marshal west of the Mississippi River, Bass Reeves
  • Milli Vanilli: The story of Robert Pilatus and Fabrice Morvan, featuring interviews with the real singers, record executives, the producer mastermind behind the deception and exclusive interviews with Rob and Fab.

Apple TV+

  • A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving: Peppermint Patty invites everyone to Charlie Brown’s for Thanksgiving, even though he’s going to see his grandmother; Snoopy decides to cook his own version of a Thanksgiving meal with help from his friends.
  • Lessons in Chemistry: In the 1950s, Elizabeth Zott’s dream of being a scientist is challenged by a society that says women belong in the domestic sphere; she accepts a job on a TV cooking show and sets out to teach a nation of housewives way more than recipes.

**In Theaters

  • Wish
  • Thanksgiving
  • The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes
  • Napoleon
  • The Marvels
Posted in Celebration, Holiday Celebration!!

It’s My Birthday!!

In my Stevie Wonder voice, Happy Birthday to me!! I am blessed and grateful to see another year of life! 42 Years Young (Shout out to Jackie Robinson)!!

I love being a Summer Baby, nothing like celebrating on a sun shining day!! Let me also make sure I shout some Birthday twins, my high school classmate James Benson, my Soror and Big Sista Tamiko Jackson, and my celebrity girl crush Angels Bassett!!

Now in addition to today being my Birthday, it is also National Rum Day!! So make sure to have an ice cold Rum Punch, Dark and Stormy, or Mai Tai in honor of me today :-)!

Cheers to 42 and many, many more!! It’s time to celebrate!!

Posted in A Professor's Thoughts..., Celebration, Conversations with Beloved & Kindred, Holiday Celebration!!

Happy Juneteenth!!

Just wanted to re-share a past discussion I had with one of my friends and colleagues Kaniqua Robinson on the history and contemporary relevance of the Juneteenth holiday as a curated expression of Black joy and agency.

The message then is still very much relevant today!!

Happy Juneteenth Family & Friends!!

Posted in Celebration, Holiday Celebration!!, On the Desk...

It’s Valentine’s Day!!

Happy Valentine’s Day to all my BFF Family and Friends!! As a way of sharing my appreciation, here is a music playlist as well as film list to get you in the spirit!! Enjoy!!

Here is a playlist I created called “Black Love Through Music” on Spotify

And if you need a few suggestions of what to watch while cozied up on the couch, hanging out with that special someone, or with your crew check out this list of films to watch:

  • Claudine (1974)
  • Hav Plenty (1997)
  • How Stella Got Her Groove Back (1998)
  • Brown Sugar (2002)
  • If Beale Street Could Talk (2018)
  • Rafiki (2018)
  • Naz & Maalik (2015)
  • Purple Rain (1984)
  • Carmen Jones (1954)
  • The Photograph (2020)
  • Breakin’ All The Rules (2004)
  • Nothing But A Man (1964)
  • Sylvie’s Love (2020)
  • Poetic Justice (1993)
  • Jason’s Lyric (1994)
  • Moonlight (2016)
  • Beyond the Lights (2014)
  • Really Love (2020)
  • I Will Follow (2010)
  • I Think I Love My Wife (2007)
  • Love Jones (1997)

Just a little something to get you in the mood for today and even for the rest of the week and month!! Happy V-Day!! Enjoy and Spread the Love!!

Photo by Djurdjina ph.djiz on Pexels.com
Posted in Celebration, Holiday Celebration!!

Happy Black History Month!!

Today marks the first day of Black History Month 2023!!

This year’s theme as designed by the Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH) is “Black Resistance”! Oh how appropriate!! As noted on the ASALH website:

African Americans have resisted historic and ongoing oppression, in all forms, especially the racial terrorism of lynching, racial pogroms, and police killings since our arrival upon these shores. These efforts have been to advocate for a dignified self-determined life in a just democratic society in the United States and beyond the United States political jurisdiction. The 1950s and 1970s in the United States was defined by actions such as sit-ins, boycotts, walk outs, strikes by Black people and white allies in the fight for justice against discrimination in all sectors of society from employment to education to housing. Black people have had to consistently push the United States to live up to its ideals of freedom, liberty, and justice for all. Systematic oppression has sought to negate much of the dreams of our griots, like Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston, and our freedom fighters, like the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Septima Clark, and Fannie Lou Hamer fought to realize. Black people have sought ways to nurture and protect Black lives, and for autonomy of their physical and intellectual bodies through armed resistance, voluntary emigration, nonviolence, education, literature, sports, media, and legislation/politics. Black led institutions and affiliations have lobbied, litigated, legislated, protested, and achieved success.

And to get your month started check out these few facts about the annual celebration of Black History Month!!

  • Black History Month recognizes All African American Experiences!!
  • Check out this video of the man behind this annual celebration, Carter G. Woodson:
  • Black History Month became nationally recognized officially in 1976
  • The United States and Canada celebrate Black history in February, while the United Kingdom, Ireland, and the Netherlands honor it during the month of October. 
  • Before it was established as a month long celebration, Black History Month Began as Negro History Week!
Photo by Katerina Holmes on Pexels.com
Posted in A Professor's Thoughts..., Holiday Celebration!!

Habari Gani?! Imani-Kwanzaa Day 7

Habari Gani, my friends?? What’s the good news?! Today is the final day of Kwanzaa and my favorite principle, Imani (Faith)!! Through Imani, we “believe with all our heart in our people, our parents, our teachers, our leaders and the righteousness and victory of our struggle.

As a spiritual person this principle hits home for me as I am always trying to keep the faith!!
While, it may not be easy, faith – especially during difficult and trying times – brings us closer to making our dreams a reality.

None of the other 6 principles would be able to come to fruition without that mustard seed of faith!! Think about this in order to have cooperative economics, we must have faith in the businesses that we support.

To have purpose, we must have faith that we are here for a reason. It is essential that we have faith in ourselves, our leaders, teachers, parents and in the victory of our struggle. As a free, proud and productive people we can do ALL things with just a little bit of faith.

Faith is put forth as the last principle as unity is put forth as the first principle for a definite reason. It is to indicate that without unity, we cannot begin our most important work, but without faith we cannot sustain it. Unity brings us together and harnesses our strength, but faith in each other and the Good, the Right, the Beautiful inspires and sustains the coming together and the commitment to take the work to its end.

Allow yourself to let go of any worry and trust in your Black excellence!! Never lose faith in yourself and our community. Be proud of who you are and the community you live in!!

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.”

~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Until next year, while Kwanzaa is celebrated from December 26th-January 1st know that you can practice any and all of these principles year around! Remember Kwanzaa is a celebration of culture, community, and family!

Harambe and Happy New Year!!

Posted in A Professor's Thoughts..., Holiday Celebration!!

Habari Gani?! Kuumba-Kwanzaa Day 6

Habari Gani Good People?! What’s the good news?

Today we celebrate my second favorite principle Kuumba (Creativity), “to do always as much as we can, in the way we can, in order to leave our community more beautiful and beneficial than we inherited it.” The principle has both a social and spiritual dimension and is deeply rooted in social and sacred teachings of African societies.

Having creativity requires a few things – motivation and inspiration! What I can definitely say with pride is my people practically ooze creativity, just look at social media, in the classrooms, on television…everyday all day!! The creative minds of Black folks have birthed ground-breaking inventions, culture-shaping entertainment and fashion and new ways of healing and uplifting the community.

Some ways to practice Kuumba, include taking part in a musical Kwanzaa celebration, painting a mural, starting a garden in your neighborhood, building a new app. Just know that you can create something new, whether it be a piece of art or simply a new idea.

On this day, it is also customary to host a large feast called Karamu, which can be held at home, a community center or a church. The menu usually features foods and ingredients native to the African continent such as yams, okra, tamarind, peanuts, collard greens and hibiscus.

Photo by Askar Abayev on Pexels.com

Think about this for a moment…What creative skills do you have that can help build your community? Maybe it’s something you do with your hands, maybe it’s writing a proposal, managing the books as an accountant or leading a team.

Posted in A Professor's Thoughts..., Holiday Celebration!!

Habari Gani?! Nia-Kwanzaa Day 5

Habari Gani?!! What’s today’s good news?

Today, we celebrate one of my favorite principles of Kwanzaa….Nia (Purpose). Through Nia, the principal seeks “to make our collective vocation the building and developing of our community in order to restore our people to their traditional greatness.”

Examine your ability to put your own skills and talent to use through service to your family and community at large. When we take time to reflect on our expectations from life, we can take the opportunity to discuss one’s desires and hopes with family and friends. On today, try to determine your purpose and how it will result in positive achievements for family and community.

In thinking about how you can reflect on Nia, consider these few practices:

  • Reflect on finding your purpose in life outside of your career
  • Add some books and movies that educate you about your ancestry and your history
  • Set short term and long term goals that will set you and your community on a path towards a more intentional and purpose-driven life.

What’s your purpose in life for today and in the future?