Mr. Governor, I swear there's a cover up....

I was just driving through my city last night.... smoking on a white grape White Owl.... so maybe it was the munchies that put me on game... but I noticed there are actually more liquor stores in Gary, IN than food joints. Ain't that a bitch? There isn't 3 sit-down restaurants worth a damn inside of my 53 square blocks. There used to be a jiggy little mom-and-pop Black owned Italian joint in Miller. It was called La Dolce Vida and there used to be little slam sessions and open mic nights up there every Tuesday. Now it's closed and the building is up for sale. That spot lasted all of a year and a half... maybe. I know rii?

My question is this: What does it say about a community where the only thriving businesses either sale Hennessey or narcotics? To me it says that when people don't have shit else, they lose site of their priorities. I can't even lie, I do it to. Hell, I bought that blunt with the same money that probably should have gone into my gas tank with my taking-late-night-strolls-like- gas- is-free ass. It's almost as if you get this mentality like, "Well fuck it, if ain't nothing else gonna go right today, I bet you I catch my buzz. Fuck it!". Well to be honest, I'm tired of living that way. I'm tired of watching people live, and die, that way.

You don't change your world with one HUGE action... most of the time. It's usually done with the gradual accumulation of small baby steps, but once you look back on it...whoa.

My nigga Nas said it best:

"I switched my motto, instead of saying fuck tomorrow, that buck that bought a bottle could have struck the lotto"

It's amazing what a little change can do. You can fill the gas tank of my car for the same cost as a 5th of Crown Royal just to put it in perspective. How many Saturday night 5ths have you killed in your life? Could you see yourself driving up a whole tank of gas in one Saturday though? How many opportunities to better yourself have you passed up because you didn't think about the following Sunday?

Do the math. there's 52 2-day weekends a year. Let's say you party (drink, smoke, or whatever) on most of those days (3/4s or so). That's 78 days out of the year, right? That's not that much right? Remember that.

Now you're already asleep 8 hours a day (or more if you're lazy like me) so that's 33% of your life being lived in a dream. Now that 78 days a year adds up to 21% of your time. BUT... remember, you can only party IF you're awake, so really it's taking 21% of the 66% of your total lifespan (because 33% of that time you are sleep so you're not partying during those hours). Now I'm not a math wiz at all, but I believe that leaves you with about 52% of live left after "taxes". That's crazy. 48% of your life is a joke. But the shit ain't even funny... it's sad.

I can only lead the horse to water. I can't make it drink think....

It's been real,
Young Rilla live from LHNS by way of Gangster Island