Christmas Catch-Up

Sooooo, lets play catch up on the 12 days of Christmas.

On the 3rd day of Christmas, the gift given to me - My In-laws Steve and Mary Robinson.

Now, I know in many cases its odd to speak highly of your in laws but not for me. I genuinely love my in-laws. They are wonderful people, great parents and fantastic pastors. They don't treat me like a son-in-law, they treat me like a son. Before my move to RI, I got laid off from my job and didn't have the ability to save for my move. Well, they thought it would be a great move to allow me to live with them when I move here until I got on my feet. WHOA! I was dating their daughter and they let me move in! Sound crazy? Sure. But I guess real love will make you do crazy things, and these people walk in real love. PLUS, knowing these wonderful people has allowed me to learn a very valuable lesson (well, lots of valuable lessons, but this on in particular) - get to know your girlfriend/wife's mother, it will teach you alot about your wife.

On the 4th day of Christmas the gift given to me - my friend Randy Ealy

I always say that I've known Randy for 13 or years, we've been friends for 10. Randy and I were roommates in Tulsa and that's where our friendship REALLY took off. Most people's relationships fizzle when they move in together but ours got stronger. He also helped to move our music forward while we were in Tulsa. Quietly, he helped to move the "Christian" hip-hop scene forward out there. We've been able to say in touch and it was a real treat having him out here to visit a few weeks back. Good times. Now, we just have to get him to step his Spades game up! (Inside joke, sorry)
From quasi-enemies (9-11th grades were BRUTAL! Cordial, but not very friendly with each other) to incredibly close friends. I was proud to have him in my wedding and glad he is my friend.

On the 5th day of Christmas the gift given to me - James "Cash Hollistah" Curtis

Cash and I met in a wierd way - on an online rap battle board. Here's the idea in a nutshell - emcees go on the message and battle each other with rhymes. Its like battling (for those not in the know - think the final scenes of "8 Mile") except its not verbal, its all typed. Kinda lame and kinda fun all at the same time. Well, I thought Cash was the best guy on the boards, but he let this subpar emcee beat him. I voiced my opinion, and he vehemently disagreed. ESPECIALLY after I mangled the same guy in my own battle. Well, when we finally met face to face at an event me and my partners threw, he was a little bitter about my assesment of the battle. But eventually we got cool with each other. I saw the guy as being super creative but the crew he was with at the time didn't really allow for his ideas to grow - so we took him in over at Sungate. Plus he was having a not so great living situation, so Randy and I (see the above post) took him in at our place. Since then, Cash and I have been good friends and he motivates me (even though he doesn't know it) to step my emcee skills up. The guy is crazy creative. He and I are working together on a few songs for my album. Those songs are going to be SPECTACULAR! Just wait and see.
Creative. Friend. My gift.

Now, I'm all caught up. See you tomorrow. For the next day of Christmas! Great gifts, great people!