What about your friends ...

I haven't made a best friendship since college.

(Spousal unit notwithstanding) I have made friends with a few people through careers, mutual interests and through other friends, but no one cares about you like your homies. I've met great people since I graduated, but it takes going through trials and tribulations with people to get to the point where they truly know you and you truly know them. You've been through battles together, with scars to prove it and you have shared the best and worst moments together.

So here is a shout-out of appreciation to my friends. Thanks for being there in the good times and I deeply thank you for being there in bad ones. I'm here for you -- now and always.

(White) Baby Got Back?

Round butts on white girls are making a serious comeback.

Here at thirteenstoryideas, it's all love. Over the weekend I was out on a couple of pub crawls with friends. Loyal observer of the feminine form that I am, I've noticed an emerging trend and recently conferred with other male friends for their thoughts. We collectively deem it so: It doesn't necessarily matter if the woman's figure is hourglass or slim: a nice, round butt is a nice, round butt. And it seems more white girls (at least in the Midwest) are sprouting serious junk in their trunks. There was even a white woman aspiring to model for Apple Bottoms at a recent model search in St. Louis.

Now, I'm fully aware that sistas and some Latinas have always been blessed in the back dept. But my friends and I have never seen the percentage of nice butts on white girls as high as it is today. First, let's get this straight: NO pair of jeans, tights, leggings or form-fitting slacks can make an ass where there is none. If it was a simple question of genetics, we would have seen this trend 10-15 years ago, not two. Could it be because white women in general are now more athletic? As a rabid cyclist, I know that hours on the bike, riding hard and standing and climbing hills does wonders for legs and butts and some of the nicest asses I've seen have been of women on road or mountain bikes. Could it be that nearly all meat we consume is now laden with hormones? (But that doesn't solve the riddle for our anglo vegans with nice bootys) Do you see the trend where you live? If so, what do you see as the cause? And why do most white guys not like white women to have round bootys?

Guilty pleasures

Music is my guilty pleasure. If I were to admit to shameless American consumerism, I would cop to the fact that my number one vice is music. I have spent more money on music in my lifetime (so far) than probably anything else outside of college, a mortgage and a car note. I am consumed by it. Music is like the greatest legalized drug there is. It can be inspirational, contemplative, mood-setting or hyped. I'm kind of known for my enjoyment of long road trips in the car. Part of it is from my Dad being in a van club in the 70s, but most of it is because I can listen to music and sing at the top of my lungs (usually slightly off-key, problematic when you are married to a woman with retentive pitch sensitivities) . With people in nearby cars watching. And I don't care. I'll drive to see friends and relatives just because I relate to the open road, man and machine crusin' down the highway, with my very own soundtrack. You've gotta have your own soundtrack. So I drive, listening to this ingenious invention known as iPod. I've now got an attachment on my car stereo that allows me to just plug in the iPod and play. No iTrips. Plays right through the car stereo. Instantly, I can go back to songs with so much meaning and association to my life: from the song of my very first crush on a girl (This is for the lover in you, by Shalimar) to the song that reminds me of my father ("Island of Souls" by Sting). Music is my guilty pleasure. What's yours?

Victimized by the purse-clutch yet again

The other day in a midday snowstorm, I was walking with a friend to meet a few other people for lunch. Trying not to fall and fighting the wind, we turned a corner, cutting through the surface-level subway entry. A white woman, 40-ish, saw us and immediately went into purse-clutch mode. My friend was oblivious, but I noticed. Crossing the street and approaching the restaurant, white woman number two was crossing the other way and clutched her purse upon site of us. This time I couldn't resist calling over my shoulder: Hold it tight, because we wouldn't want to take it and run slip-sliding down the street.

It was almost like that opening scene in Crash only my friend and I are business professionals (and dressed like it) and not thugs or thieves. We weren't menacing anyone -- we were cold and hurrying like everyone else. I've been a victim of the purse clutch more times than I care to remember. It doesn't matter if I'm in a suit, a pair of jeans or my cycling gear. And it hasn't just been white women clutching their purses. A few months ago, it happened in my company elevator.

Subtle racism? Are white guys also purse-clutch victims? So what's your purse-clutch story?

Madame President?

First Lady supports a Condi ’08 GOP ticket
Is America ready for a woman president not on ABC Tuesdays at 9? In an interview yesterday, First Lady Laura Bush said she would support a run for the 2008 White House by Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice. Rice is arguably the highest-profile Bush administration cabinet member and her interaction with world leaders would place her near the top of the GOP hopefuls heap for the Repbulican nomination. Condi says she won’t run. Germany has a woman chancellor. Liberia has a woman president. Now in spite of party differences, the question remains: is America — and particularly Joe Sixpack — ready for a Madame President?

Hello world

Okay. I've finally done it — started a place where my cybervoice can be heard — or echo in the vastness of the Net. thirteenstoryideas is a place you can visit and offer an opinion on the news, what's going on, teach someone or learn something. Life's too short to not be heard. And certainly too short not to listen. Here, I plan to do both. Welcome.