Bullets & Bagels

The following:

Text: IM chat

TOD: Morning.

Where: somewhere in America

Who: Jose/Ziti

zitibakedbossa: What up son?

JoseJoseJose: chillin. you?

zitibakedbossa: what's up? I think I left my zune cable at your res.

JoseJoseJose: yeah. I got it

zitibakedbossa: good look

zitibakedbossa: bagels this morning?

JoseJoseJose: yessir! panera?

zitibakedbossa: yep. your babe usually works in the a.m.

JoseJoseJose: oh word? Nice. I'm going to hav to get splashy. lol

zitibakedbossa: you're wild. you know what I miss? a couple of winters ago they had the tomato bisque. Son! That shit was like liquid pizza! I used to run in there with this bird I knew.

JoseJoseJose: bisque?

zitibakedbossa: yeah. bisque.

JoseJoseJose: zee youre a funny guy. bisque? what hood dude eats bisque? youre kinda uppity. lol

zitibakedbossa: fuck you. lol. Actually, double fuck you. lol.

JoseJoseJose: Go ahead with your bisque story you uppity muthafucker. lol.

zitibakedbossa: ya mama is an uppity muthafucker. take that.

JoseJoseJose: go ahead with your story man.

zitibakedbossa: wasn't a story. they just had this bisque and the shit was good.

JoseJoseJose: I thought you said there was a babe involved?

zitibakedbossa: ohhhhhhhhhh. I was saying that I used to fly in there with this babe---when they had the bisque.

JoseJoseJose: you was f***ing her?

zitibakedbossa: Nah son. She was fine, but that would have been a whole bunch of problems. She was just my bisque buddy.

JoseJoseJose: She was hot? fuck that. she would have been my butt buddy. lol. lol.

JoseJoseJose: who was it?

zitibakedbossa: Miranda.

JoseJoseJose: the puerto ricn chick? what the fuck? are you serious? that girl is baddddddddd. I would have been all over that!

zitibakedbossa: Ha! you're stupid. Oh, she's dope. just not worth the trouble. I'm good.

JoseJoseJose: Youre good? Nah muthafucker you ain't good, you're gay!

zitibakedbossa: Gay! Fuck you. Ya mama's gay. Ya mama's gay like Ellen. Ya mama's gay like Billie Jean King.

JoseJoseJose: lol

JoseJoseJose: fuck you.

zitibakedbossa: LOL! Why I gotta be gay, just because I didn't give the chick the business? Some shit just ain't worth it. Some chicks are just nice to look at.

JoseJoseJose: Yeah. Youre right.

JoseJoseJose: You sure you aint gay?

JoseJoseJose: lol

zitibakedbossa: Is ya mama gay? Matter of fact, isn't your girl gay? On the low? Isn't she just using you as a "moustache"? LOL.

zitibakedbossa: I bet that chick eats more rug than a fucking dust mite! LOL. she's gay like a sunny day!

JoseJoseJose: lol. she ain't gay. TRUST ME.

zitibakedbossa: trust DEEZ. You guys arent f***ing. You get your nails done together, thats it. The only thing you're doing together is picking out a clear coat for the mani/pedi.

zitibakedbossa: LOL

zitibakedbossa: LOL

zitibakedbossa: LOL

zitibakedbossa: LOL

zitibakedbossa: LOL

JoseJoseJose: lol. your funny. Whatever man. All Im saying is that you have the babe in the palm of your hand and you dont go the extra mile.

zitibakedbossa: keyword="extra".

zitibakedbossa: dude, are we getting bagels or what?

JoseJoseJose: Yeah. be there in 15.

zitibakedbossa: Cool.

JoseJoseJose: Hey if we see Miri, I'll break the news of your gayness to her. lol.

zitibakedbossa: Hey, If we see ya mama I'll break the news of her gayness to her. NEWS FLASH: "This just in: JOSE'S MOM GAY LIKE A FEMALE RAPPER.....NEWS AT 11!"

zitibakedbossa: LOL!

JoseJoseJose: we got the same mom.

zitibakedbossa: fuck you, clear coat.

The END.

When Sharks Eat Sushi

The following is something that I wrote for THEKOSPOT.com. I deviated a bit from what I normally write. I like it.

When Sharks Eat Sushi

by Zee Johnson

You let these miserable bastards devour your art. You let these spineless number crunchers invade your past time. You let these philistines ram a shotgun up your nostril.

Click.

You let the soul extractors dine on the remaining bits of your malnourished souls. The sharks circle your lifeboat. They are deciding which limb to suck the meat off [of] first.

What you just read was the last 10 to 15 years of your sport.....or the synopsis of a B-grade horror movie.

Boxing is a brutal sport.

Like Hockey.

Like Football.

Like Rugby.

Like Swordplay.

Boxing is a brutality redefined as a skilled and graceful art. The problem is that the brutality of the sport exists not only in the ring, but in the admin of the sport itself. The glamour and the biz of the sport is so drained that it has become just as ugly and mangled as the sport itself. It has become a sacrificed beast; bleeding and whining its way to a slow and cold death. If the people that run your sport are more animalistic than the events of the sport itself, its demise becomes a spectacle without grace or respect. The beasts in the 3 piece suits cash out...........

These are the sharks, Ladies and Gentlemen. They have come to the table to eat your finely prepared sushi.....the bastards.

They haven't always been bastards or have they? Matter of fact, they have always been bastards---you just didn't see it.....as much.

When they had Ali, they did everything in their power to preserve sport and show.

When they had Sugar Ray (Leonard), they had an articulate, intelligent and technical fighter. They loved it (notice I didn't say "they loved him"; the sharks don't love anyone). They loved his packaging. He was good for business.

When they had Tyson, they had a ruthless, take no prisoners gladiator. He was strong and concussive. He could hit you 25 times in 5 seconds. He could knock you down in less than 2 minutes. That was bankable sport for them. Their enthusiasm to "get behind" that was inexplicable. Tyson was ancient Rome set to Hip Hop music.

After DeLa Hoya, they let it go. "Golden Boy". He was strong, cut, young and beautiful. He was the equivalent of a boxing Adonis. From there, they signed off. They just left it----and so did I. I left. There was no spirit. It was a loose, incredible mess. When I referenced people, who were deep in the trenches of the sport, it seemed they knew just as much as I did. Their knowledge was just as confounded and convoluted as mine; a boxing exile. This thing became hodgepodge. It was a pile. You have a sport with 3 or 4 ruling sanctions, but one of them isn't really "official" or some such? Lines and sport history seemed blurred. Tyson lost one belt, then he had no belts. Then what the hell happened to Holyfield and Foreman? And that's just the heavyweight division. Roy Jones was a star one minute, the next minute he doesn't box and he's producing rap albums. It's like if you miss one bout you come back to a vastly different sport.

Coverage of the sport is damn near non-existent. Unless something truly magnificent happens, TV news of the sport is scarce. It hardly requires front page status in the sports page. There is no 5 Star publication on the stands that details the sport in its glory. The last boxing magazine I read looked like a second rate fanzine cobbled together by junior high school kids.

See, you just don't get it. There is no red carpet roll out of your sport. There is no glossy rag with posters of your favorite pugilists. There are no front page spread of last nights knockout punch. There are no dramatic replays on ESPN....well.....maybe a little.

The sharks left. They ate the fucking sushi and they hauled ass. Now your sport is a lifeless carcass. No one is a bona fide "star". There is no parade. There is no King trumpeting this sport. Who is the squared ring superhero knocking out bums with force/pleasure?

Gottdammit, sharks!!! We need you....sort of.

We need the news coverage. We need the magazine pull-out poster. We need to lock down the sports page of USA Today! We need boxing movies, other than Clint making movies about trailer park wenches who can't take a left hook. C'mon you sharks (disguised as agents)! Do your god forsaken job! We need you sharks (disguised as promoters) to gather a bastion of new fighters whose skin is titanium and whose diction is good enough to be on Charlie Rose. We need you sharks (disguised as organization exec's) to wrangle your varying leagues together as one cohesive entity.

But heed my warning sharks:

Nurture the butter you churn. It keeps you in business. It keeps fighters eager. It keeps venue holders happy. It keeps fans intrigued and faithful. Nurture your damned sport. This shit pile is a significant mess. There is plenty for everyone. You don't have to devour your meal like a fucking heathen. And clean up your mess.

Fucking sharks.

Stranger In Moscow

The following is reprinted from some things I posted on Twitter. It probably reads disjointed in some places. It may be fragmented in other places. I assume all fault.

I feel like I lost a family member.about 13 hours ago from web
One thing I've learned from this? If you have people in your life that are going through ANY kind of turmoil and you do nothing about itabout 13 hours ago from web
you are co-signing their downward spiral.about 13 hours ago from web
A man lived 45 of 50 years in the spotlight. Many of those years, we watched odd behavior and eccentricities and cracked jokes and madeabout 13 hours ago from web
jokes. But somewhere, there was a child in that man, who went through things that no child should have to endure.about 13 hours ago from web
A man sacrificed himself for OUR entertainment. Is that really cool? Is that righteous?about 13 hours ago from web
You just don't wake up and say "I want to build an amusement park in my backyard". That comes from something you're trying to get back to.about 13 hours ago from web
Most of us have little people in our lives. Make sure they are safe. Make sure they are fed. Make sure they are happy. Make sure they haveabout 13 hours ago from web
a splendid childhood. You owe them that. If Michael Jackson has taught us anything, its the value of keeping our children in kindabout 13 hours ago from web
and loving environments. Their is nothing more important than the sanctity, grace and upbringing of God's little people.about 13 hours ago from web
You are responsible. Whether you have children or not.about 13 hours ago from web
Your sons, daughters, nieces, nephews, godchildren, little brothers and sisters---be their protectors. They need it and it is your duty.about 13 hours ago from web
We can't sacrifice our children anymore. Michael Jackson was a sacrifice and we watched. I feel like NOW we must atone.about 13 hours ago from web
This morning, I listened to "Man In The Mirror". I haven't really cried like this in awhile. I am humbled by life. Thank you, Mike.about 13 hours ago from web
I am looking at the man in the mirror. I need to make some changes. Amen.about 13 hours ago from web
-End-
To: Michael Jackson, The King Of Pop
1958-2000andForever.

Got To Be There.
I love you,
Ziti.