Trayvon Martin Sunday

Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin's mother, was the honorary guest today at Saint Paul A.M.E Church, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, where my daughter visits to sing with the youth choir once a month. While Ms. Fulton was only able to attend the first service (I was at the second), I was told she gave very brief but powerful words to the congregants.

Pastor Rev. Melvin E. Wilson had asked everyone to don a hoodie to the services in remembrance of Trayvon. I had to admit that at first I was a bit taken aback. The only times I wear a hoodie is when I'm home working on my motorcycle or other manual labor. This was Sunday, going to church with my daughter. We'd both be wearing hoodies.

The first thought in my head was, I really don't want to be DWB today, not even by chance, not with my kid in the car. But then I thought, there really isn't anything inherently wrong with wearing a hoodie. It's just the fear of becoming a target (e.g. KWB). So, I had another conversation with my daughter (at her level), about who Trayvon was, who killed him, and why he got killed. We also talked about being perceived as being a treat because of one's appearance, including skin color, and how to mitigate that.

In the service it was remarkable to see three and four generations of congregants, of all backgrounds, with hoodies. Professor Chales Ogeltree gave the word (i.e. sermon) for the second service; focusing on remembering Travyon and those before him (e.g. Emmett Till), honoring Trayvon by understanding the laws of our municipalities, to listen to and teach our children about "the rough side of the mountain", and not letting our fears keep them in the dark about the realities of life they ought to be aware of. Unfortunately, my son is too young to understand at the level of his sister. However, I've kept the church program, so we can start to have the conversation, one hoodie at a time.

A Definition of a Veteran

Borrowed from Mount Rushmore for the dedication

Someone who writes a check to the US government, payable for up to his or her life. I heard this last Sunday from Brigadier General Paul G. Smith, Assistant Adjutant General of the Massachusetts Army National Guard, at the dedication of the Medford, Massachusetts Veterans' Honor Roll Park. The ceremony was to add to the Honor Roll, the names of all Medford residents who served in Operation Desert Storm, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

While I wasn't deployed in any of those conflicts, I remember vividly (then) General Colin Powell announcing the start of Operation Desert Storm, only a few days before my graduation from Basic Training. Gen. Smith made it a point to acknowledge all veterans, including those in attendance. I was taken aback by the overwhelming public attendance and support. Please remember to thank a veteran and offer your support however you can. The smallest gesture can have such an impact.

Double T Catering App (DTCcater) Now Available for Android

We are pleased to announce the Double T Catering app, DTCcater, for Android, is now available on Google Play.

A Word On The Afterlife

"There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple and fine linen, and fared sumptuously every day: And there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, which was laid at his gate, full of sores, And desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table: moreover the dogs came and licked his sores. 

And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame. 

But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things: but now he is comforted, and thou art tormented. And beside all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed: so that they which would pass from hence to you cannot; neither can they pass to us, that would come from thence. 

Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. 

Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. 

And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. 

And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead."

Luke 16:19-31 KJV

What Do Heidi Klum and Tope Oluwole Have in Common?

name-list.net

According to Google, a lot. So, every once in a while, plus 'cause I'm a geek and I like search engine updates, I check out me on search engines. Don't look at me like that. People who haven't even met you are Google-ing you right now, and you're not even famous. That hiring manager, your boss, your date, your _____. The point isn't to be squeaky clean, but rather (as I tell folks) realize that once anything about you or your namesake is on the internet (regardless of how it got there), it can be data mined. So do your best to make sure you put out as much good vibes as you can. Tangent.

So instead of the typical Google web search, I went further and clicked on the images link. The first image was, big surprise, yours truly. The next several: my book covers, friends on Google+, Meetup.com acquaintances, Google-related stuff of mine, Linked In connection folks, my app, public postings, Nigeria-related stuff... Then it got interesting; a graph of Oluwoles and their location world-wide. Five are in Poland, and they are probably related to me.

Then it got weird: a couple of images of Heidi Klum. I attributed it to what I like to call Metadata Voodoo^TM (I define this as what happens at the long tail end of any search: leftovers). But then there were more images of Klum, and more. Now I was a bit embarrassed, which quickly shifted to concern. There were more than a dozen images, easily. This wasn't Metadata Voodoo. This was coming up this often because there were a considerable about metadata.

One of the first things I learned about debugging code is that when you get an error at a particular line of code, it's typical the result of something immediately before the error was raised. Most adults do this naturally already. If you see a new dent in your door at the shopping mall, the first place you typically investigate is the car next to you.

I also noticed amongst the Klum images, some of the movie that always comes up when I search me; The Life and Death of Peter Sellers. This movie stars my (much more attractive) namesake, and (drum roll please) Heidi Klum.

Google you, and let me know what interesting things about you pop-up.

Take Heart, Have Courage

More raw sermon notes, from the iPod:

Sermon "courage":



Take heart. A God-size dream is bigger than you and your resources 

Courage is to proceed despite fear.

1. Courage is not waiting for fear to go away.

Wherever there is uncertainty there will always be a need for leaders 

2. Anyone can be courageous 

What would you do if you aren't afraid? (from Who Moved My Cheese

3. Courage is not innate but developed

Progress requires courage 

4. Courage is feeling fear but choosing to act anyway.

Have the courage to listen and obey God

If a man beget an hundred children, and live many years, so that the days of his 
years be many, and his soul be not filled with good, and also that he have no 
burial; I say, that an untimely birth is better than he. For he cometh in with 
vanity, and departeth in darkness, and his name shall be covered with darkness. 
Moreover he hath not seen the sun, nor known any thing: this hath more rest than 
the other. Yea, though he live a thousand years twice told, yet hath he seen no 
good: do not all go to one place? (Ecclesiastes 6:3-6 KJV)

There is no security in that which is no longer meaningful.

For Men Only: How To Never Lose Another Umbrella

Wait.

Make sure your lady is OUT of the room.

Or better yet, out of the house. Are you all set? Good. I'll make it short, 

in case she sneaks back in, because you were so eager to get her out, that you

 overdid it by giving her your credit card and car keys. Here it is... Get a pink umbrella. Get

 a tote-sized, bright, monochrome pink (that's pink only, for you art majors) umbrella. I've 

had  mine for seven years, or something. Ain't no shame fellas. Ain't no shame. I've left it at work, 

on the bus, in restaurants, at Fenway Park, at my mama house...and it's always gotten back to 

me , before I've gotten too far. Once you get yours... Men will be too embarrassed to steal it. 

Women 

will want 

to see 

the look of 

horror on your 

face when they 

return it and 

then compliment 

you about being 

secure in your 

manhood.

Kids won't 

want it, 

because kids 

don't want 

what they 

already have 

or that you're 

too eager to 

give to them, 

such as chores, 

consequences, 

advice, and 

Amoxicillin.

And after all 

this time, I've 

finally figured 

out to fix my 

umbrella when 

the canopy 

separates 

from the tips.

If you want 

to know how, 

let me know

...if you dare. :)