‘”What we’re suggesting is that something that doesn’t really interact with anything is changing something that can’t be changed,” Jenkins added.’

Thanks to Paleo-Future for the link.

If there’s one thing 42 years of life in Detroit taught me, it’s that if somebody REALLY wants to get you, they’re going to get you, and if they want you that badly, a few people on either side of you who aren’t even involved won’t make much difference.

It REALLY pisses me off everytime *I* have to endure some new loss of personal freedom or privacy everytime some dumbass shows the TSA to be a bunch of waterheads.  I also wish more people would see this article.

In this, Williams’ first literary work, he recounts the tales of two female protagonists (the eponymous Sweets, and another, unnamed heroine) from the Chicago neighbourhoods where he has spent the majority of his adult life.  Williams’ prose is dense, almost claustrophobic at times in its depiction of prostitutes, dealers, and other south-side hustlers out to make that fabled ‘Big Score’.  His deeply urban prosody was left largely intact by the editors, and so the work bears the unmistakable stamp of a truly unique literary voice.

Let’s be straight here: this ain’t no “East Of Eden”, but a solid and compelling story takes this book pretty far on its own merits.  Some of you also know that I am an aquaintance of Andre Williams; indeed, we’ve worked together several times in the past, but regular readers will know that I pull no punches here; if I didn’t like this book, you would know.  Anyway:

Fans of Iceberg Slim and Donald Goines will find themselves right at home in the pages of ‘Sweets’: a headlong run through a gritty underworld written with the intimate veritas of someone who has most definitely lived there.  A bit expensive for its size (US$12.95 for 103 pages), ‘Sweets and Other Stories’ is nonetheless a worthwhile read and an excellent debut.  A+, y’all.

When I first got them, I tried one on with one of my ubiquitous Chuck Taylors to see if there was any difference in feel.  The first thing you notice, when lacing them up, is that there are more eyelets, 20 as opposed to the Converse’s 14.  Next you notice the heavier material the shoe is made from.  Combined, the two make the shoe feel far more solid on the foot, as if they’ll last much longer then the current six months for a pair of Chucks.

I stood up and started to walk around.  “What the hell’s the matter with you??”  My girlfriend (hereafter referred to as ‘The GF’) was looking at me like I was crazy.

“I don’t know!” I yelled, lurching around the room like a drunken giraffe.  “The shoe is making me walk funny!”

“Well, take it off, or something!  You’re scaring me.”

Instead of taking it off, I put the other one on.  The secret of PF Flyers lies in a patented rubber insert which changes the way you stand and walk (the “PF” stands for “Posture Foundation”), resulting in alleged reduced leg strain.

That was the day before I was to get on the plane.  After wearing them for a couple of months now,  I have to say I like these A LOT. They feel more solidly built than the Chucks, and the posture-altering insert is apparently doing it’s job, as I had no real issues over the course of the 15-city tour; my legs and feet felt fine.  In fact, they still do. My only issue is with the tread.  They’re like rolling on cheater slicks: effin’ awesome on dry concrete, but Ghods help you if you gotta make a sharp turn  in the rain.

I would love to be able to tell you how well they would wear under daily use, as in would they last longer than a pair of Chucks; however, that part of the experiment was voided by a sharp chunk of metal cutting the fabric somewhere in Italy.  I would be willing to try again, with another pair…

I’m gonna give the PF Flyers Center Hi a solid A.  This may be the shoe that finally ends my 23-year-exclusive run of Chuck Taylors.  These things are GREAT.

EDIT: I’ve noticed people keep finding this review, and I feel I should put a link to my REVISED review, here.