Big Sole Blog (BSB)

This story reminds me of Ryan O'Neal and Ali MacGraw's movie, Love Story, but this story is true and the people are African-American.I discovered this true love story through a friend who shared it on Facebook via Clutch Magazine. LaKeasha Monique Rutledge-Draft and NFL free agent Chris Draft, the couple in a very moving weding video, were married on November 27, 2011, and one month later,

When a car accident in your city makes national news, you know it had to be horrific. WWL-TV, other local stations, and CNN reported on the I-10 accident that happened early this morning near the Michoud exit of I-10 in New Orleans East. At least 40 vehicles, including 18-wheeler trucks, collided; two people were killed and 59 injured, say sources. The pictures look like an invisible fist reached

First, congratulations to Drew Brees who broke Dan Marino's record of 5084 passing yards in a season yesterday during a game in which the New Orleans Saints clobbered the Atlanta Falcons. As I said on Twitter, "That record couldn't have been broken by a finer person."Second, WOW! to Jerome Simpson of the Cincinatti Bengals. I saw a clip on ESPN last night that blew me away. He flipped over an

The Associated Press and other news sources report that the pleasant memories of Christmas 2012 have been marred for residents of Grapevine, Texas. For the first time in more than 18 months, someone committed murder in the small town. A man dressed in a Santa suit shot to death six people ages 18 to 60 on Christmas morning while the family opened presents, and then the gunman killed himself,

Prince released "Da, Da, Da," featuring a rap by Scrap D, in 1996.The song is on his Emancipation CD, which he recorded after his Warner Bros. contract expired. Listening to this song before Christmas 2011, I was struck by how its lyrics remain relevant today, so I created a little video. You can watch it by clicking this link or the Prince picture above. The video should start automatically. If

Here is a clip from NBC's A Sing-Off Christmas featuring Committed and Howard University's a cappella group Afro-Blue. It's not a traditional Christmas song, but its lyrics certainly hit the spot this Christmas when so many Americans are struggling financially.

In 2012, a documentary based on Douglas A. Blackmon's Pulitzer-Prize-winning book, Slavery By Another Name, will premier on PBS. The book documents the systematic re-enslavement of many African-Americans in prisons in the American South from the Civil War to World War II. Blackmon, a white journalist, calls this form of slavery "neoslavery" and says that slavery technically did not end until 1942

What do people wear to the Zulu Ball in New Orleans? That is a common question that I see coming through my traffic tracker as we near the Mardi Gras season, and so, I edited some video I had of the Zulu Ball 2011 to scenes that would let people get an idea of how some of the participants dress. The Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club also known as the Zulu Krewe requires formal attire for the

Here is video of Oprah's interview with Prince in 1996 when he released "Emancipation" after he was completely free of his Warner Bros. contract. This is vintage Prince. The man is ever evolving. (See more recent interview on Lopez Tonight)1996: Sleep Around, If I Was Your Girlfriend, Do... by PrincelicousI'd say watch it while you can because I doubt Oprah gave permission for this video to be

I did not intend to mention the Dartmouth Aires again, but as I said in my post about NBC's The Sing-Off finale, I'm catching up with what I missed via OnDemand. Anyway, the Aires's performance of R. Kelley's "Ignition Remix" on Episode 9 had me howling with laughter. As judge Shawn Stockman said, "there were so many uncomfortable moments ..." in the performance, and yet it was fun. Ben Folds

I am on break and catching up via OnDemand TV the shows that I like but missed during the semester. I enjoyed this performance on NBC's finale of The Sing-Off: Ben Folds singing his song "Not the Same" with the Dartmouth Aires and the audience. (I need to contemplate that song's meaning.) Although Michael Odokara-Okigbo of the Aires did not show his chops during "Not the Same," I expect to see

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economyBear with me here, readers. Consider Ratigan's rant and the advice that he gave to President Barack Obama during an August show, and then consider Obama's December 6th "Teddy Roosevelt speech."I haven't had much time to watch TV this semester or pay attention to politics. I avoid politics in particular lately because I don't

I would not have missed this Prince appearance and interview in April if I watched Lopez Tonight. *Sigh.* But thank, God, for the Internet. Lopez and Prince talk about not swearing--replacing cuss words with the word artichoke. They also discuss Prince's low-cost concert tickets, auctioning off one of Prince's guitars, his being a vegetarian (Is that why he looks so good?), and his fashion sense,

When I took my family out to breakfast Saturday morning, my son, who should not have been surfing the Net during family time, chuckled loudly while looking at something on his Droid phone. He then showed me the picture of a black man holding up and looking at a bag of Negro, some kind of snack food. I laughed pretty hard, and my daughter laughed as well.The bag clearly had foreign words on it,