Fight or Flight.

Decision Points

“I'm not Egyptian and don't fully comprehend the burden that's been lifted by Mubarak's decision to step down, but I can empathize with their joy.”

- D. Elias

The revolution in Egypt is nothing short of remarkable.  The power of a people united never ceases to amaze me; it can literally move mountains.  Watching a group of young and educated Egyptian citizens mobilize and convince an entire nation to stand and fight made me reflect on my grandfather’s generation and how they performed similar miracles in this country.  But throughout the weeks of articles, editorials and interviews, one person who deserves a lot of credit for this historic event, fails to get mentioned.

He's on FIRE!

WWJD?

No, not that one.

The Jesus that I’m talking about played for Lincoln High School and had a father that looked a whole lot like Denzel Washington sporting an afro.  Jesus Shuttlesworth’s real life counterpart is Ray Allen, guard for the Boston Celtics.  On February 10^th, Allen became the most prolific 3-point shooter in NBA history eclipsing Reggie Miller’s mark of 2,560 career 3’s.  This milestone further solidifies Allen’s case as the greatest shooter of all time.  Sure he’s 6’5” and blessed with incredible genetics and athleticism, but his accomplishments can be summed up in one word.

I drove by the fork in the road and went straight.

“B”

There are no shortcuts…

When I first got to Brandeis, I was on a pre-med track with hopes of becoming a pediatrician.  One of my first classes was chemistry lab where we had to conduct real experiments and document every step of the process.  Once we reached our conclusion we had to do a separate calculation to determine how far off we were from the correct answer.  It was bad enough that I was wrong but to have to analyze how wrong I was pained me to no end.  Needless to say, I didn’t last long in that class and soon after, I left the path of medicine.  That’s great for all of the future sick kids of the world because I would have been a terrible doctor.  My brain is not equipped for science because if you are at point A and need to get to C, you must analyze - sometimes ad nausea - B.

2011... Let's get it poppin'

The Lineup: January ‘11

What I can’t live without:  Decoded.  Anyone that knows me, knows how much I love and appreciate Hip-Hop.  I didn’t think it was possible to love the culture more... and then I read this book.  Jay-Z didn’t just write a good book for a rapper, he wrote a great book, period.  He beautifully weaved anecdotes, personal perspectives and autobiographical information while at the same time “decoding” the complex lyrics of his songs.  When you finish the book, you realize that Jay-Z is not only the greatest rapper of all time but one of America’s greatest artists and cultural icons.  Go get it.

(Related: PREDICTION – Jay-Z will one day win a Nobel Prize)

You deserve more but I hope these words are a good start...

Hero.

We love our heroes.  We love giving them medals and holding ceremonies in their honor.  We love watching movies about their lives, and having our children idolize them.  It’s why we give our soldiers their own holiday and lend our support to the police and fire department.  We even stretch the definition of hero to include teachers, doctors and philanthropists.   We don’t however include recovering addicts in the conversation of heroism.

Just in time for MLK Day...

Underdogs.

On January 10^th, the Auburn Tigers completed their perfect season by winning college football’s National Championship.  They beat the Oregon Ducks, who also had an undefeated regular season, in a hotly contested game that came down to the wire.  The Tigers held up the trophy… but they weren’t the only perfect team.

Vacation is over... Let's go get some money!

Homework.

A commonly used phrase, “student of the game” refers to the idea of someone so entrenched with her field that she literally studies it.  This applies to everything – music, science and sports.  So if you plan to own your own business, I suggest you grab your backpack and Trapper Keeper because its time to go back to school.