Crew Love Vol. 1

This is a tribute to those of you I have known the majority of my life. A group of men who have traversed life's treacherous highway at my side. I love you man.....(I will attempt to chronicle them chronologically).


Anthony Owen Taylor Jr. - Sonny Corleone-My feet-This is my big brother, I say this laughingly because he hasn't been bigger than me since first grade. My brother and I disagree on nearly everything, we even disagree on how much we disagree. However for as long as I can remember he has been right there having my back and showing me things even when I don't want him to. "Righty tighty, lefty loosey." If people make up your life, and you view your life as a body, then he would be the feet. His relationship has carried me through my life, and taught me how to interact with everybody else. He is hilarious in his own right, but he has allowed me to be Eddie Murphy while he played Charlie. One love ......Darkness.

Edward Jones- Johnny Fontane- My hands-This is my cousin/brother he has been there for me longer than anyone else excluding my brother. He has been my competitor, cohort and counselor for most of my life. We have broken, busted and burned so many things I think we need professional help. Any relationship I was in, my girl had to get along with him because sooner or later we were going to all be together. In the body that represents my life he is the hands, because everything I touch has his imprint. For our time together had a huge impact on my sense of humor and perspective. We don't hang out as much as we would like but any time we hook up it's like '86. Love ya boy.

Naamon Johnson-Luca Brazi-My heart-This is my friend/brother who has rolled with me for as long as I can remember. I don't even remember meeting him. It seems like he has always been there. Naamon and I were kicked out of Sabbath School together for playing too much. It may seem impossible to get thrown out of a church function but we found a way. The most spectacular thing about Naamon was that he was cool playing the background. He never fought attention, or sought the spotlight he was just happy to be down. Naamon is my heart not because that's what you call someone special who passed away. No Naamon is my heart because our relationship existed on minimal communication. We could sit for hours and not feel forced to have contrived conversations just to entertain each other. There was also no need to hide or conceal what was really going on with the other. We both experienced breakups that were tough in there own ways and we shared that without concern for embarrassing ourselves. RIP Big Dawg, Love ya.

Andrew Jennings-Fredo Corleone-Inner Voice-This is my cousin/brother who is a few years younger than me. We have grown closer, and I remember vividly the moment it happen. He was starting college the following morning and we sat in my room and discuss my college career up to that point and what was in store for him. I saw him as an individual I could learn from and teach at the same time. That has been the nature of our coexistence an ebb and flow of information going both ways. Whether debating Kobe's superiority to Vince Carter or Jay-Z's lyrical dominance over Eminem he's stood his ground. He's earned my respect, keep ya head up baby brother. He is my inner voice because oftentimes when I write or debate certain thing in my head he is the sparring partner.

Conan Andre Patmon-Tom Hagen-Spine-This is my friend/brother who I have known for 20 years this summer. (Dang we old). Over the last ten years I have probably more time with him than anyone aside from my wife. He is the one who challenges my BS, and the reason I always have my arguments together. There is an unstated rule between us that if I don't know it he is supposed to. For the most part that has remained true, to the chagrin of our other friends. We may both agree that Kobe is the best player but for completely different reasons and argue them to the death. It has gotten so bad on occasion that people start to preface their statements with "I ain't trying to argue this but..." I call him the spine because by our association I have less passive and more assertive. It's like sparring with Mike Tyson you start to realize your hitting a little harder and you can take a lot more. Two fingers. One.

I have written this because ya'll don't read anything else I write. Will you read about you. Kanichiwa B****es. PS check out Dre's art show October 15th at Holiday Inn Dayton Mall.