I tried to get this done on Friday, but oh well. Monday it is. I’ll still try to write them on Fridays in the future.

Did you know that when Janet Jackson was 17, she did what people told her?

The Pleasure Principle was the last of the singles from her coming out party album Control. And while it might’ve only been the 6th single of a 9 song project, it’s video is one that I adore. It’s bootyful.

• Janet was looking a little like Michael with the knee pads. Wait, MJ wears shin guards.
  
• I now want to dance in a warehouse in my bare feet like Kevin Bacon. Ok, maybe not, but it looks cool.
  
• She’s even wearing a wristband. I wonder if she stole that from James DeBarge.
  
• It’s the pleasure principle, principle, oh ohhhh ohhhh oh.
  
• How many people have broken something trying to run and tip the chair like that?
  
• Check out that cabbage patch. That was like Jerry Rice in the end zone.
  
• I see an ode to her big bro in there.
  
• My buddy Kenny Threeths, Arsenio Hall, and me were there three biggest Janet Jackson fans I knew.
  
• Everything about this video is cool except that fake back flip off the box.

Now that Janet has left Virgin and is going to be making records under Island/Def Jam, can she take it back to her glory days? Probably not. The one thing that can take her back to the top is risky. But if she wants to make it back to the top, it might be something she simply has to do. The first thing is that she has to politely dump Jermaine Dupri. We don’t want him trying to ruin her in the industry. Do it nicely. Secondly, call up Willis Jackson. Third, change your name to Charlene, and you and Willis can be together once again. I think it can happen. And then maybe he can be happy again.

They left each other once, and they’ll have to leave each other again.

That should be the tag line as we finish out this season. Unlike with Hogan Knows Best, I’m going to finish this season out even though it petered out so badly. I had high hopes. And it was like taking the yucky yellow medicine to get through the season.

Here we go.

It looks like it starts a bit late and I’m guessing that was because Steven and Trishelle hosted a look back at the previous six episodes and the times were off.

Arissa and Frank are discussing the short time they just spent together. Steven says if he never saw Alton again for the rest of his life, he’d be ok with that.

Awesome Anne the life coach is back. She’s the woman who helped out Arissa gain trust with her group. She has lots of work to do. Irulan pretty much calls Alton out without calling him out and then he leaves the room because he fears getting emotional. Awesome Anne tries to get some stuff stirred up and the group doesn’t want openly share for fear of ruining their last day in the hotel together. Pussies.

Anne tells Brynn that she doesn’t see herself like everyone else sees her. She tells Irulan that she doesn’t want to hold on to things in the past and sometimes she does do that. She tells Alton that he refuses to forgive himself in a way that others forgive him. She says that Frank doesn’t show genuine emotion. She tells Trishelle that she lacks self worth. Trishelle chimes in and says that she’s awesome as a way to combat the criticism. She tells Arissa that she needs to take care of herself like she cares for others. She tells Steven that he needs to look beyond the surface or else his future relationships will be temporary like his past ones. The group doesn’t like the feedback. In fact, they fought it tremendously. Surprisingly, just five years ago, they loved Awesome Anne, and now they think she’s full of awesome, well you know.

There’s another exercise where the roommates tell each other two things they admire about each other. Irulan tells Alton she admires his exuberance for life and that people want to give him everything. He says that she’s beautiful and he admires her love for animals. Frank tells Brynn that he admires her for her children.

She sits with Alton and tells him that he walked away four times. Alton tells Anne that his new girlfriend Hope probably doesn’t know how much he loves her because he fears giving the best of him to women and then them leaving him. Wait, didn’t dude mess with Janelle during the RR/RW Challenge? Not to say that he has bad taste or anything. They talk about Alton and Steven and Alton says Steven is really surface level and Awesome Anne agrees.

They are out at the pool and then Steven says they all are ending on a good note and all of a sudden, they get swarmed with bees. Brynn gets stung and she’s a bit nervous as the crew makes fun of her.

George Maloof invites the group to Moon which seems to be a night club where many celebrities attend. They even get to walk the red carpet and Trishelle says it was so fun, she’d do it herself. I’m guessing she didn’t get to do that for the Cheerleading Ninjas movie.

Alton is the first to leave and he says that he still loves Irulan and she holds a special place in her heart. Steven says the reason they all get along is because they are supposed to before everyone leaves. Dick.

Trishelle says she can’t do her own laundry and thus, she needs to drop it off.

Brynn is next to leave. Irulan says she sure has her stuff together.

Frank says Arissa is all smiles 90% of the time and then exactly the opposite the other 10% and that he hopes she’ll be more smiles. Arissa says Frank taught her to not take herself so seriously and Irulan says she’ll miss Frank the most.

Arissa says she and Irulan have rekindled their friendship and it made the trip worth it.

The last three go out together. Steven says the reunion was way better than he expected it to be.

Finally, it’s over. And I’m begging MTV to not even think about putting them back together in another five years. I’m not sure the world will be ready for the 30-something Las Vegas crew.

These are my thoughts ladies and gentlemen, just my thoughts.

• Nicole Ritchie finally can’t stay thin.
  
• Why am I singing N’Sync’s It’s Gonna Be Me these days?
  
• My prediction is that on September 11th, 50 Cent gets out to an early lead, but Kanyeze wins by 11th round TKO.
  
• Steve Sanders was robbed on Dancing With The Stars.
  
• And because he was robbed, Kelly Taylor is joining the cast next season for revenge!
  
• If it’s true that Britney Spears is pregnant again, I’m predicting either Tom Brady or Nappy Red from detox as the fathers.
  
• Whatever happened to Sisqo from Dru Hill? I’m going to guess that he went into a cave after someone was sleeping in his bed and messing with his head.

• Transformers might’ve been the most fun I’ve had at the movie theater this year, but it was still an hour too long.
  
• However, if that extra hour was just a bunch of Megan Fox scenes, I think I would’ve been ok with that.
  
• The Spice Girls are going on a comeback tour and I will go on record to say that Scary Spice will not be singing Say You’ll Be There to Eddie Murphy.
  
• I was hoping to see the American Idols Live, but it just wasn’t meant to be. I wanted to see Sanjaya do Michael Jackson.
  
• My new favorite – Mickie James’ Jeans~!

• Barry Bonds will break the home run record against the Dodgers, just so he can choke Jeff Kent again. Wait, Kent is injured. Damn.
  
• I hope Chubby Checker Jr., the fat white guy, the guy who looks like JC from N’Sync, and the guy who likes like he should be on Bone Thug win on Diddy’s Making Of The Band 4.
  
• Speaking of Diddy, he separated from longtime girlfriend and mother of three of his children, Kim Porter yet again. In other words, he found some hot young thang to fool with for a few months until Kim takes him back.
  
• And what’s all this talk about Danity Kane breaking up? Give me an Aundrea solo album and I’ll be happy, but for the rest of them, come to your senses.

I’ll serenade you on my way out.

Every little thing I do
Never seems enough for you
You don’t wanna lose it again
But I’m not like them
Baby, when you finally,
Get to love somebody
Guess what,
It’s gonna be me..

I was just 15 years old and heard a track called Check The Rhime. I was floored. I had no idea who A Tribe Called Quest, affectionately now know to me as simply Tribe, was. They were three guys who created this sound of rap music that was very jazzy and soulful. Q-Tip had this helium sounding voice and Phife Dawg called himself the Five Footer. DJ Ali Shaheed Muhammad rounded out the group. But it wasn’t until I heard a track called Scenario that I really started to understand the difference between what was good and bad in rap music. The posse cut featured another group called Leaders Of The New School (LONS) and it was just insane. It also made Busta Rhymes and he probably owes his career to it. Scenario made me wish I could rap.

• Did you know that Bo knows this, and Bo knows that, but Bo don’t know jack, cause Bo can’t rap?
  
• Phife knew were he stood as he calls himself, “short, dark, and handsome”.
  
• Check out Reggie Noble smiling.
  
• Wow, how, now, wow, how, now brown cow?
  
• You understand the time frame when the references are Bo Jackson and Arsenio.
  
• Spike Lee looks absolutely no different 16 years later, except I’m not sure if he still wears the X hat.
  
• Q-Tip is my man but I may never fully forgive him for making out with Janet Jackson in Poetic Justice. Tupac could get it, but not Q-Tip.
  
• I don’t understand anything Busta says, but when you’re most well known for the line, “Rahhh rahhh like the dungeon dragon,” does it even matter?
  
• Young Busa Bus had mad charisma and also lacked the extra 100 pounds Busa Bus carries today.


• “Checkady-choco, the chocolate chicken.” Whenever you have a chocolate chicken, life is good.
  
• What’s up with the crazy hand signals Q?

I know that people say that Midnight Marauders is THE CLASSIC Tribe album. Yes, it’s great. But it doesn’t have Scenario on it. And to me, that’s their signature song and that’s why I can never go against The Low End Theory. Will they ever get back together and record again? Who knows, but even if they don’t, I’ll just throw this track on once a month and be fine.

On Memorial weekend earlier this year, my mom and dad put together the 1st Annual Nakamoto Walk Or Run For Fun. It was an event designed to be a 5k walk/run for the family with a BBQ for afterwards. Also, we decided that we would ask the family for donations and then as a family, decide where we wanted to donate the money. We raised about $420 and decided to give it to the local Boys & Girls Club.

Last month, I put the money together in the form of a money order and gave it to them. I talked a little bit with whoever was in charge and learned that it used to be called Boys City (which is how my uncles remember it) and was changed to include girls in the 90s. They even had the picture of the first girl member. I walked around the club and checked out their center and was pleasantly surprised. They had lots of pool tables and outside activities going on. But the lady I spoke to did mention that they exist because of people being able to donate money. I was happy that we chose them when she said that.

To everyone who donated, feel proudly that the money you donated is helping an establishment make a difference in the lives of children.

Here are a few pictures of the center.