It’s hard to believe it’s already 2010. But we’re here and there are still new things in store for this blog. When I started blogging, the main goal was to share information and hopefully open up dialogue on issues that affect the black community. I think I did that in some way this year, but it wasn’t to the extent that I’d done in previous years.

The goal for this year is to continue on the track of keeping the site informative. I plan on opening it up to others who are interested in sharing their point of view with the readers of this site. There are some talented, well-written people out there and I want to showcase them and get some real discussions going.

Late in the year, when I got swamped with projects for work, I fell off the blogging scene for a couple of weeks. Blogging can be a daunting task and coming up with things to write about can be time consuming (especially when it isn’t one of my strengths). So this year, I’m going to solicit your help. If you or someone you know are interested in blogging, but don’t want to manage their own site, email me at info @ theotalks.net. I’m always in need of someone to write and it usually turns out to be a win-win situation for both parties.

This year, I also want to focus more on minority small businesses. In these turbulent economic times, a lot of people are turning to owning their own business. I think that’s great, so I decided to start a list of some of my favorite small businesses. I’ll be highlighting small business owners throughout the year, so contact me if you’re interested in participating.

Finally, here are some websites that you need to keep an eye on for 2010. I’ll be blogging a lot about them and hope to be visible on most of them as time permits. Check them out when you get the chance:

• Liberate Magazine
• Tech Relations Firm
• Dallas South News
• Barter My Biz

Have a Happy New Year and God Bless!

These three words hung on the wall of “The Mighty Eagle Band” hall at Willowridge High School in Mo. City, TX. It was a constant reminder of what it would take to be a part of one of the greatest bands in the country. The band was under the direction of  Ronald B. Thornton, whom I had the pleasure of meeting during his time as band director for The Texas Southern University Ocean of Soul.

I learned a lot from Mr. Thornton. While at TSU, he was my first private lesson teacher and taught me how to be a disciplined musician. He gave me the opportunity to be a leader, even when I didn’t think I was quite ready. He placed me in situations that were real confidence builders for my growth as a musician and young man. While I didn’t realize it, the lessons and experiences I gained during my time in band, were helpful when I needed them later in life.

There were times when he’d get on us for not playing to our potential and he made sure we were diverse in our music selections and marching style. We played everything from orchestra to popular tunes on the radio. There was one time when he took a group of us to see B.B. King in concert. He knew the trumpet player and was  able to get us backstage passes and meet B.B. to get autographed pictures. He took the band all over the country and built a legacy that will live on forever.

I have a lot of good memories that I will always cherish, but I the one I’ll remember the most was seeing the Thorntons’ at my dad’s funeral. They’d read he’d passed in the paper and decided to come show their support. It’s tough when you lose a love one and for me the whole day was a blur. But I do remember seeing them there and it meant a lot to me to know they cared.

Today, I along with a church full of students, family and friends attended Mr. Thornton’s funeral. He impacted the lives of many people and his funeral was a testament to the life he lived.  While he may not physically be with us, he will certainly live on in our hearts. His work is done, but it’s up to us who he taught, mentored and counseled to continue the work left to do.

At the end of the ceremony Mr. Thornton’s son dismissed us with the question “Who’s got the greatest band in the country?”. Those who knew the answer responded. Mr. Thornton, Prof, Big T, Ronnie, Big Thunder, we will miss you. Thank you for teaching us what honor, pride & discipline is all about. And thank you to his family for sharing him with us.

R.I.P Ronald Thornton (Facebook)
Our love for Mr. Ronald B. Thornton (Facebook)

by Darrell Holmes

Michael Jackson was BAD!

Since Michael Jackson passed on June 25, 2009 the numerous memories of music and moments relating to Michael have flooded blogs, Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter.  In fact, the Twitter rush was so tremendous that Today on NBC reported that a server went down.  I can personally remember having a Jackson 5 Triumph Tour poster on my wall, the first time I heard Thriller, dressing up as Michael for one of my sister’s birthday party talent shows, and wishing my name was “Michael” as a child because it was such a “cool” name.  One young lady on Thursday’s evening news conveyed that she was going to be a dancer in his upcoming tour and how she moved to LA from her home country because Michael lives there.

Remembering Michael Jackson forces you to remember that his impact can’t truly be measured.  He was more than just a music icon; he caused a paradigm shift in our culture.  Even at a young age, Michael’s beaming demeanor and mature vocal style made non-R&B listeners to pay attention.  As he grew older he used his music to draw peoples together across racial lines with one particular highlight of that being his “Billie Jean” video premiere on MTV.  Prior to that premiere MTV had never played a video by a Black musician.  His aggressive and sometimes suggestive dance styling would be the predecessor of present-day Pop, Hip Hop, and R&B artists from Usher and Chris Brown to Britney Spears and Prince.  It can be seen in the dance sequence of the Eddie Murphy movie Coming To America.  His sound is echoed in the music of artists like Mariah Carey, R Kelly, Justin Timberlake, and his little sister Janet.  His epic mini-movie music videos were ground-breaking in their length, content, and budget.  He also used his medium for humanity as he donated millions of his own money and resources to benefit sick and ailing children, underprivileged people both foreign and domestic, and animals.

None of that includes his actual music.  Among his list of accomplishments are 13 Grammy Awards, 13 #1 singles, being twice inducted in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame(solo and Jackson 5), seven Top 10 singles on one album (Thriller), the only artist with 5 #1 Singles on one album(Bad), and over 750 million albums sold worldwide.  Thriller alone spent 80 consecutive weeks in the Top 10 of the Billboard 200 while Bad spent more 38 consecutive weeks Top 5 of the Billboard 200 which is also a record.  Thriller also remains as the best-selling album of all time.

Certainly Michael was not a saint and he lived a very challenging and sometimes disturbing life.  From an outsider’s view, it seemed as though every attempt to salvage some type of “normalcy” in his life was always mistaken, questionable, or ill-advised.  Over the years, his oddities seemed to become as consistent and inflated as his successes.  Not even his accomplishments, fame, and fortune could make him immune from the roller coaster we all experience in life.  Condolescences to his children, his family, friends, and fans.

Last night during our church instrumental rehearsal, I had the opportunity to speak to some of our soon-to-be high school Juniors about my education and career. While the purpose of our ministry is to use the talents we’ve been given to glorify God, the adult leaders in the group felt it was also important for us to make sure the youth could benefit from some of our life experiences as they prepare for college. We didn’t want to lecture them about the “old days” and we wanted it to be in a relaxed environment where they could ask questions.
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What is Photo Phinish?

If you talk to the people I hang around most, the majority will say that I’m a pretty quiet, easy-going, kind of guy. I tend to not get upset about a lot of things and when placed in a situation where some would flip out, I try my best to remain calm, cool and collected. For a long time, I thought patience was one of my greatest virtues. But then I had kids…
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What is Photo Phinish?

This weekend I had the opportunity to watch my son ride his bike without my help. I was in awe as he rode down the street because this was only his second lesson. The first lesson was grueling and I paid the price with a sore back due to two hours of bending over to help him pedal. After that lesson I just knew it would be a while before he caught on. I’d be showing him how to turn and he would be looking at the rabbit running across the street. It took some patience from each of us and I knew it was going to be a long summer.

After the first lesson, about a week passed because I wanted to let him decide when he was ready to go back out. He jumped on the bike and with very little assistance from me started pedaling. I watched in amazement and gave myself a pat on the back for being such a great teacher. But when reality set in, I knew he was riding solo because he was ready to do it. All he needed was a little guidance in the right direction. Once he understood the concept of pedaling, he was on his way.

I guess that’s what parenting is all about. You give your kids what they need and pray that they are listening. They will fall, make mistakes and run into curbs, but if you’ve given them a solid foundation, success isn’t far away.  Next year, I’ll see how he does without the training wheels.

In part one of my Staying Organized series, I mentioned some of the ways I planned on going e-organized for the new year. It’s been fun and I’ve actually learned a lot about what it’ll take for me to better manage my time. Since the first post some things have changed, so I thought I’d update you on how it’s going.

To get a better plan with Sprint, I ended up renewing my contract and got the Blackberry (BB) Curve 8330. I was reluctant because I was so used to my Windows Mobile phone, but I quickly learned what the BB could do. Under my Google account created a calendar for myself, my wife, the kids, and church. Each have their own assigned colors and I can show/hide which I want to see at any given time. I also created a Google account for my wife, so she would have access to my calendars and the events I entered. I set up the browser on her phone to pull up the mobile Google calendar site when she opened it. That way she’d know what I had planned for the day (I always forget to tell her about stuff I need to do). I still use Google Sync to sync the Google Calendar with the BB calendar on my phone. Trust me, it works great.

I just recently listened to the audio book “Getting Things Done” by David Allen. With the tips in this book, I was able to find a way to fine tune my e-organization plan and add some efficiency to what I was doing. I changed how I used the The Remember the Milk (RTM) app I mentioned in the first post. I used the BB application they created to sync all of my tasks every hour from the website to the phone. Any task, big or small, goes in RTM and I assign date if it’s something that needs to be done soon. This works nice because it allows me to clear my head of all the “stuff” I need to do. It also gives me an organized repository where I can visually see the tasks that need to be done for the day. To make sure the list stayed current, I had to set a goal that all tasks for the day must be completed or rescheduled before I go to bed.

I’ve also started using an application called Evernote that allows me to access/capture ideas, notes and information from my PC or phone. But I’m going to save how I use this for another day because I’m trying to decide whether I’ll post it here or at Liberate Magazine.

Well, that’s all I have for now. I’d be interested in hearing your comments or questions. This may sound like a lot to keep up with, but for me it’s been working. My planner was never with me when I needed it, but I always have my phone. There is a slight learning curve in getting the system together, but the geek in me loves it.

I do have plans on going into each online app I use in more detail, but why do that now when I can have you come back for part 3?

I decided to write this post in response to a blog post I read at Liberate Magazine. The question was “How do you balance work with everything else going on in your life?”. You can leave your comments at liberatemagazine.com.

Finding work-life balance is something that my wife and I’ve been trying to do for a while. There are many times when I wonder if it’s even possible. When you are an entrepreneur with a full-time job, finding that balance becomes a lot more difficult. As soon as we get home, the kids need to eat, get ready for bed and we need to get ready for the next day. To be successful at even finding something close to balance takes a team effort to get it done.

I’ve found that the night time is my best friend because that’s the time when I begin working that “second job”. This can be hard if you’re not a night person and means there are times when sacrifices have to be made. This is why finding something you love to do is very important. When you’re doing something you love, it really doesn’t seem like work at all. You’ll still experience the stresses that go with running a business, but the motivation to success will definitely keep you pushing forward.

Instead of a balance, I tend to see managing work/life as a seesaw. At any point and time either side will get more attention than the other. The support group around me is important and I try to bring keep them informed on what I’m doing and I try to be aware of how I manage my time. I’m always looking for better ways to get things done and I try to keep my life as close to what I feel is balanced as possible. When the scale is tipping too far in one direction, you’ll know. That’s a lesson I’ve had to learn the hard way.

I was a fan of the Speed Racer cartoon and recently have become a fan of the movie. I heard it didn’t make much money, but the story line while cheesy at times really made me think. Speed Racer as a little boy dreamed about becoming a race car driving and being as good as his older brother Rex. Rex who Speed idolized, was killed in a race and Speed used everything his brother taught him to become the greatest racer ever.

It’s funny because I remember having posters of planes on my wall, yet I never really pursued flying because someone told me you can’t fly in the military if you wear glasses. Whether you liked the movie or not, there’s a message in it for all of us to heed. Those dreams and goals you have should never be overlooked and never let anyone keep you from doing something you love to do. I’ve been blessed to find other passions in life and I make sure I use my talents and abilities to help make this world a better place. People can and will try to stand in your way, but that’s when you set your eyes on the prize and push through them.

If you haven’t seen the movie, check it out. You might like it.

I get these emails from a member of the church I attend and thought I’d share:

2 CORINTHIANS 4:17 In our life we are overwhelmed with ‘information’. But so often information isn’t what we need. What we need to face the challenges of life is ‘formation’, the shaping of our lives into the people God destined us to be. The responsibility for this formation belongs to the Holy Spirit, the living, active presence of God who is with us every second of every minute of every day, concerned with every detail of our development.

Paul writes, ‘Every detail works to your advantage…So we’re not giving up. How could we! Even though on the outside it often looks like things are falling apart on us, on the inside, where God is making new life, not a day goes by without his unfolding grace’ (2 Corinthians 4:15-17 TM). Note the words, ‘we’re not giving up.’ Any time we want to move forward, obstacles are going to get in the way, and God’s Word teaches us that we should expect nothing less. The author HG Wells asked, ‘What on earth would a man do with himself if something didn’t stand in his way?’ Why did he say that? Because pushing against stuff strengthens our muscles! Each obstacle we overcome teaches us something new. We start shaping up, getting smarter and more confident. Check history, the greatest people were those who faced the most difficult challenges and found their true selves in the process!