Get Your CRAP Picked Up FREE, courtesy of Fayetteville

Everybody has seen the TV show Hoarders, so you all know how appalling hoarding can lead ones lifestyle to become.  People who allow the collection of things in their residence to make a negative impact on their livelihoods are troubled, but there is a little hoarder in many of us.  You may have the luxury of hanging onto junk that you will "probably" never make use of, but it's just not a good idea.  Mini storage owners everywhere hate the idea of letting go of excess "stuff" but you should save money and lighten your load.  

I must admit that I have a tendency to hang on to tickets to ball games/concerts/tournaments or used shopping bags that "have potential" or maybe even a program from last weeks church service.  I like knick-nacks and relatively pointless momentos and I try to keep myself from going overboard and letting my tendency to "collect" create issues.  Two things made me think about this topic today.  First I was moving a large load of junk out of my parents house onto the road to be disposed of (Bravo Mom, keep letting stuff go).  This "large load" was of various things that have been in the garage/basement for a long while and would never be taken seriously ever again, even by her grandkids' grandkids.  Second is when I was pulling out my battalion of sweaters and couldn't bring myself to throw away ones with permanent stains and "minor" holes.  Even with a small hole or stain, these particular sweaters had character (and cashmere and silk aint cheap).

I'm not suggesting that you just throw stuff away.  Recycle it, give it to someone who wants it, donate it to a charity or even sell the stuff yourself (ebay, yard sale, bartering with flea marketers).  But don't let all kinds of pointless erroneous crap that you don't need share your living space just sitting there forever.  People all over the place would love turning your second hand stuff into their new home additions.  Tons of less fortunate and/or kooky folks would probably think that your hideous lamp or questionable pottery would go perfectly on their bedside table.  Many churches have yard sales that will turn the stuff you don't want into $$$ to support their ministry (namely Haymount UMC on Ft. Bragg Rd.) and the Salvation Army and GoodWill will gladly take the second hand clothes/bedding/miscellaneous items that you have no use for to support their cause.  

If you do have stuff that is beyond repair or just needs to be thrown away, all you have to do is call the CITY and they'll come pick it up, FREE of charge.  Just put it on your curb and they'll come haul it away, FREE.  You need to call 910.433.1329 and follow the instructions to Bulk Item Pick-Up to schedule a pick-up.  There are some materials that they will not pick-up FREE (solid concrete blocks, construction materials, glass or mirrors, etc) but most of your average "junk" is fair game.  -furniture -appliances -old junk -you name it

Do yourself, your parents, your kids, your grandparents, your neighbor or your spouse a favor and get rid of some junk.  You all deserve a lighter load- and maybe even something new and improved.   Call the City of Fayetteville @ 910.433.1329 and politely ask them to come to your curb and pick up the junk that needs to go.  

Oh My Guyyy

Hate To Get The Seats In The Benz Wet

"I'm from the 'Ville where they bang for the money, carry four 5's like its change for a twenty."
With 7 homicides in Fayetteville in the past 2 weeks, this lyric rings true.

Fayetteville, NC product Jermaine Cole has made it to the big leagues of hip hop and recently released a debut album on Jay-Z's newest label, Roc Nation.  I don't really want to open Pandora's box on the merits and sanctity of American Hip-Hop culture, but let me tell you this:

I don't really KNOW Jermaine Cole.  The last two times I saw him he didn't have time to chat and catch up on the old days kickin' it in the halls of Terry Sanford, where we both graduated high school.  On the other hand, he was busy performing at UNC-P last time I saw him, and the time before that he was shopping at WalMart on Skibo.  We are friends on Facebook, though.

When the average sophisticated American thinks about hip-hop they probably think bling-bling, degrading, vulgar, idiotic and offensive.  Cole's resume breaks the mold of you're average rapper.  He attended St. Johns on an academic scholarship after a strong academic career and a laundry list of athletic and extracurricular activities in high school.  He graduated with honors from the NYC on schedule while continuing to pursue his dream of making music for a living.  After a few crucial mix tapes, he got a once in a lifetime break of catching Jay-Z's attention.  Now he is rumored to have had repeated intimate relations with Rihanna, he enjoys eating cheese, eggs and potatoes on the beaches of Barbados and he even parties with Hova & Steve Stoute.

Cole does not shy away from hip hops tendency to use some racy lyrics and his songs include a vernacular that seemingly degrades women in various ways.  The first time I listened to "Cole World:  The Sideline Story" I was slightly bothered by the usage of the N word.  I don't include the word in my vocabulary- so I was kinda ticked off by the prevalence of the off limits word.  How can I drop every song of the album verbatim on unsuspecting friends and strangers if I have to omit a half dozen words from each song??  As the most famous person who originated from Fayetteville in the world today, Jermaine Cole REPS THE VILLE as hard as you could possibly imagine.  He is proud of where he came from, and it's nice to see an eloquent and insightful player climbing the entertainment ladder.  I will be nodding my head to the tunes of Mr. Cole for the foreseeable future.  You should check out his vibes.

"I let you feel like you the shit, but boy you can't outfart me"  -J Cole