I'm Starting A New Blog

Yikes!  I can't believe I haven't posted in almost two months. Between my ever increasing workload, planning to apply to graduate school and volunteering, there hasn't been much time to blog as much as I would have liked. However, in the midst of all of this, I signed up for Rosetta Thruman's Blogging School. And after much thought and consideration, I've decided to discontinue blogging at Neems + Things. Originally, I planned to change the focus of this blog and transition into my new focus but quickly realized that such a plan would not work. So instead, I am developing a new blog focused on the intersection of philanthropy, grants management and technology.

My new blog, Naeema's Notes, is way to hone my skills in a more professional capacity and gather my thoughts about the state of philanthropy in relation to grants managers such as myself and our increased reliance on sophisticated technologies.  For example, I'm planning to write about the similarities between philanthropy and hip-hop.  It has always been a dream of mine and I cannot express how excited I am to develop an audience and expound on some of the ideas I've collected over the past two years of working in a community foundation. Or perhaps, I just needed an excuse to buy my own domain name. Either way, I am truly excited to embark on this new journey and move onto the next stage of my personal development.

I understand that some of you may not be interested in the new focus of Naeema's Notes, but I highly encourage you to take a look. And the most important thing I would like to is thank you. Thank you for your support over the past two years and I hope that you will continue to read. Talk to you soon!

So Long, Farewell

The Sound of Music

— MOVIECLIPS.com

Life With Dementia Behind Bars [VIDEO]

Old age and dementia are two topics I avoid thinking about. It's not that I'm afraid to get old, rather I am petrified of loosing my memories and the faculty to care for myself. I can accept that one day I may move a bit slower and my joints might become stiff. But, knowing I might be unable to recognize loved ones or even remember a brief conversation is humbling. Actually, it is the one life-change I'm not equipped to handle, yet. Now could you imagine going through this life-changing process in a prison, though? 

What do you think about the Gold Coats program? How should an aging prison population be treated? Can they be paroled or admitted to nursing homes even if they have violent criminal histories?

Women: Take A Seat at the Table and Be Heard

via

According to The Op-Ed Project, between eighty to ninety percent of all submissions to the opinion essay pages in the United States come from men—usually highly educated, older, white men. Eighty-four percent of TV pundits on Sunday morning talk shows are men, along with eighty-seven percent of Wikipedia contributors, eighty-five percent of Hollywood producers, and eighty-three percent of Congress.* Public discourse in the world is literally being created by a fraction of the population."

Read more on the Echoing Green blog.

What do you think about this? I'm appalled, but certainly not surprised. 

Michael Pollan's Food Rules Animated in Stop-Motion

Have you ever wondered what all the controversy about organic food and industrial agriculture is really about? This animation based on Michael Pollan's talk "Food Rules" offers a fascinating perspective on the topic. Not to mention, the video is absolutely fascinating. I wonder if the creators' parents ever told them not to play with their food, though.

"Food Rules" by Michael Pollan - RSA/Nominet Trust competition from Marija Jacimovic on Vimeo.

Enjoyed the video? 

VOTE for it in RSA / Nominet Trust Film Competition

I Think Black History Month Is Important

February is the shortest day of the year, but at least 2012 is a leap year there is one extra day. Nevertheless, I always find the celebration of Black History Month to be an humbling and controversial time of the year. Yes, many organizations and popular companies have obligatory celebrations, but it's the sentiment that counts, right?  

I struggled to answer that simple question for myself. At first, I wanted to encourage everyone to read How to be Black by Baratunde Thurston. Then I thought I should be overjoyed that "black history month facts" is trending on Bing.com. But, just like Asian-American and Latino-American History celebrations, these institutionalized creations are reminders that people of color were in fact considered the 'other'.  I know this is starting to sound like the beginnings of a militant rant, but it's not. I am simply trying to come to terms with my own reservations about this month of public awareness, so please bear with me.  

In my opinion, the celebration of Black History Month does not the negate the overt and covert acts of racism, the deliberate omissions of Black Americans from American history and over 200 years of slavery. It is not as if we collectively forgot that we are 'other' for the other 11 months of the year. Maybe I did have few days go by where I forgot I was black and simply considered myself an American. But for the majority of the time, I am aware of by blackness and embrace it. In fact, I proud of my history, culture, language, and culinary traditions. So I personally find it ludicrous to have a celebration of Black History condensed into one month. People of the African Diaspora have a long and rich history that dates back to even before Europeans 'discovered'  the New World, and especially before slavery in North and South America but only celebrating it in one month oversimplifies everything. And thus this leads me to wonder if it is time to stop celebrating Black History Month. As Maya Angelou said in a recent article, 

"We want to reach a time when there won’t be Black History Month, when black history will be so integrated into American history that we study it along with every other history. That’s the hope, and we have to continue to work until that is true, until that becomes a fact." 

But, then I remember that when people stop celebrating, they stop talking or remembering, and then they ultimately stop passing on information.

SOPA, Stop Online Privacy Act [Video]

The battle between old and new media is at all time high. When sites like Google and Wikipedia decide to protest SOPA and PIPA using their own homepages, the general public should take notice. Even the Whitehouse has released a statement criticizing the proposed legislation.

What do you think? Does the proposed legilsation really pose a threat to freedom of speech and business growth?

Video - SOPA, Stop Online Privacy Act -- Wikipedia, Other Sites Protesting Proposed Censorship Rules - WSJ.com:

'via Blog this'

Diabetes Doesn't Discriminate

Last spring, the National Enquirer reported that Paula Deen was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes, however, the claims have not been confirmed by Deen's publicist.   The Queen of Southern Cooking, famous for the “Lady’s Brunch Burger” – a hamburger topped with bacon and a fried egg and served on a glazed donut is now her own worse enemy. 

Stereotypes About Blahwoman in America

The Colbert Report
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Melissa Harris-Perry discusses her latest book, Sister Citizen: Shame, Stereotypes, and Black Women on the Colbert Report. I will definitely add it my 2012 reading list. Any suggestions for other books to read this year?

Hasta Luego 2011, Hello 2012

New Years Eve Times Square Celebration
 New York City 2011 

2011 was a mentally, physically and emotionally challenging year, yet I know I learned a tremendous amount about myself. Some of the experiences were through no fault of my own, while others were a result of poor decision-making. And yes, the old adage, poor decisions lead to great stories rings true for me. In a brief introspective moment I had this week, I compiled a list of the three personal lessons I learned over the past year.

1. Opposites do not necessarily attract. For example, having a positive outlook on life does not mean you will always be happy. Unfortunately, negative people, thoughts and events may arrive in your life, but you have a choice on how they affect you. Yes, sometimes to remove the negativity from around you it means distancing yourself from friends or family members. But that it is okay.
2. No one has the right to make you feel inferior. There were a few events that left me shaken because a few people made inappropiate comments toward me and I wanted to shrink back and disappear. But with all the self-control and courage I could muster up, I confronted them and spoke up for myself. Honestly, it was scary and uncomfortable, but afterwards I felt empowered and confident. 
3. I cancelled my gym membership. I thought going to the gym on a regular would make me healthier and happier and it did for an extent. But, I also realized I couldn't afford it anymore. So, instead I began looking for ways to incorporate more exercise into my daily life.  And that lead me to buy a pair of more comfortabe walking shoes and a secondhand bicycle. Now I'm walking more, taking the stairs and riding to work when the weather permits.  

Originally, I thought I would have a long list of 2012 New Years resolutions, but I have not had time to make one.  Ha, I am even surprised I found time to write this post. But honestly, I do not think I have ever made a New Years resolution and stuck with them for any amount of time. Maybe that means I have commitment issues or perhaps setting resolutions is a futile effort (for me). However, I do know that when I decide to make a change with a clear purpose and have the motivation to change, I'm unstoppable. I might become a bit overzealous, but nonetheless it leaves me feeling extremely accomplished.  So, I a plan to continue on the same path for 2012.

What did you learn in 2011? Are you making any New Years resolutions? If so, what are they?  

Facebook Can Ruin Your (Financial) Life

As if there wasn't enough stalker-like activity going on, I had to find this article in PCWorld where Dan Tynan, describes a futuristic world of financial companies mining your own social networks for potential customers or evidence of risk-taking. 

…in the last year or so, financial institutions have started exploring ways to use data from Facebook, Twitter and other networks to round out an individual borrower’s risk profile—although most entrepreneurs working on the problem say the technology is three to five years away from mainstream adoption… It gets worse. Let’s say you fall a few months behind on your payments and you’ve decided to banish the bill collecting goons to voice mail. Hong Kong-based micro-lender Lenddo – which asks for your Facebook, Twitter, Gmail, Yahoo, and Windows Live logons when you sign up -- reserves the right to rat you out to all your friends.

So, yes, I am officially paranoid about being redlined.