The Key To Longevity...

"Let's get physical, physical..."  Olivia Newton-John – Physical

Yes, I went for the cheese today.  I know some of you are wondering if I have gone off my rocker with the choice of quote.  But no, I haven't.  I just wanted to use it for the double entendre that it was when the song was originally released.  As cheesy as the song was, we were still jamming to it–DON'T LIE!

There is a method to my madness though, I wanted to touch on a topic close to my heart.  As we all know, Sunday April 20th would have been Luther Vandross' 57th birthday.  Luther was a man that we could never forget.  There is not one Luther song that can play on the radio, without you displaying a bevy of emotions.  From sadness, to jubilation, to a great big smile on your face–Luther is love.  From "A Brand New Day (Everybody Rejoice)", "Superstar", "Love The One You're With" or "Never Too Much", Luther knew what he wanted to convey with his music and he did just that.  He was the type of singer who touched everyone with his songs, incredible stage shows and talent.  Luther was not a man of mediocrity, he always took a song, even cover songs, and made them all his own.  I never got the chance to see Mr. Vandross in concert in all of his glory and that is something I will obviously never get over.  There will be an album of the week to come soon by Luther, no doubt.  But today I have brought Luther Vandross forth because of the disease that took him away.

Diabetes is a disease that is a deadly killer in all communities, but quite prevalent in the Black population. With diabetes being one of the most serious health issues raging through the black community, it is only fitting that we take a minute to reflect.  We all know and can attest to some of our stubborn family members who are as "healthy as a horse"... you know who I am talking about.  The ones who claim, "I'm fine, it's nothing!" when something starts to go askew and they refuse to go and get the ailment checked.  I think that now we, the children who are now the adults, are in the position to put our foot down and tell them about themselves.  We are now at the age where we are unfortunately going to start seeing our favorite aunts and uncles,  and our mothers and fathers leave us and move on to greener pastures above.  There are ways for us to keep them around for longer periods of time.  We should enforce the fact that nutrition is a big factor in longevity.  You are what you eat.  Exercise is essential and I don't mean running a treadmill everyday.  But taking a 20 minute walk to the park, the store or wherever makes so much of a difference.  And we have to make them see, that seeing a doctor when something is wrong is not the end of the world.  Hell I hate doctors too, but if an ailment needs to be taken care of–so be it.

I have watched my Dad take insulin from since I can remember, I have seen my Dad go into a diabetic coma and I have also watched my Dad succumb to cancer and diabetes.  This is all the while watching other family members who have recently passed away from diabetes or have had amputations.  All of the mentioned instances are all more of an incentive for me to take care of myself and those around me.  I watch what I put into my system, I exercise and try to do best by my body.  I also plan to have kids and do not want them to be exposed to this disease, even though it is in my genes.  However, I am too much of a stubborn mule to have this disease get the best of me.  We all have the power to do what we have to do to keep ourselves in check and to keep our loved ones closer for a time to come.  So in terms of getting physical, get on it!!  It can be sports and yes, it can mean sex as Miss Olivia meant...do you know how many calories you can burn?  Good lord!!!  Remember y'all, our bodies are our temples.

On a more musical note, here are a few videos that are milling around the net that I thought you would enjoy if you haven't seem them already.

Alicia Keys' "Teenage Love Affair" - Alicia's homage to School Daze is well done!  And if you don't know you better ask somebody!!  It's one of Spike Lee's best movies!  Check it out:

Ledisi's "In The Morning": Sexy soul music at its best.

And I know this one is EXTREMELY late, but it's a gem nonetheless.  Here's Jimmy Sommers featuring Vikter Duplaix "If I Knew":

And the flashback of the day is of course, vintage Luther...enjoy!

We miss you Luther...

In NYC Podcast coming tomorrow!

See y'all soon...

Tha Connoisseur