the colored boy

Tuesday, April 30, 2019

12 Extraordinary Books on Mental & Emotional Health by Blackety Black Folks

Life for Black folks in the age of dumpsterhearted presidential swampdonkeys ain’t been no crystal stair. It’s had hate in it. And macroagressions. And hope burned up. And cretins with no seasoning on their food—Bare. But all the time, we’ve been a-Harlem shakin’ ahead, and agin’ gracefully*, and spreadin’ joy, and somehow thriving in the wilderness where there ain’t been no light…

With the hateful unmoisturized masses, the price of oxtail, and taxes growing more aggressive by the day, we need every tool we can gather for the Great War against Spiritual Ashiness.

Tuesday, March 26, 2019

Oh snap. I'm teaching Mental Health First Aid classes in Spanish now.

On yesterday, I taught my third Adult Mental Health First Aid course in Spanish for an agency of home health care workers in el Bronx on behalf of the enrichment and education arm of the 1199 National Health Care Workers’ Union, the 1199SEIU Training and Employment Fund.

I’ve been teaching these classes, in English, for adults and those working/living/interacting with adolescents across NYC (and a few hospitals, offices, and schools elsewhere) since the spring of 2017. But since December, I’ve been zooming back and forth recharging with and supporting my family in Virginia and teaching in various 1199 sites around New York City, getting my body and my life back together, and not relaxing enough.

I appreciate and enjoy teaching the Mental Health First Aid course because it offers an approachable, non-clinical way to dive into the mental and emotional health and substance abuse challenges that affect every one of us in some way. Though we follow a comprehensive curriculum, every class is different because each participant brings a unique perspective, es una clase súper interactiva, and cathartic tangents rain from the sky.

And I learn just as much as the participants.

Read the rest over at The Extraordinary Negroes.

Two years ago: So I Just Became a Mental Health First Aid Instructor And Here Is What I Learned (Very Smart Brothas)

WANT TO TALK ABOUT A YOUTH OR ADULT MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID FOR YOUR OFFICE/ORGANIZATION/COMMUNITY/SCHOOL?

LET'S TALK OR WHATEVER.

Wednesday, February 6, 2019

19 Extraordinary Wellness Resources

When life gets unjiggy, even the most Janet Jackson-like among us can use some help being our most spiritually moisturized and extraordinary selves. Here are a few extraordinary wellness resources to help you (or someone you know) in the battle against spiritual ashiness.

Get into the goodness over on The Extraordinary Negroes.

Let's keep the party going: The Extraordinary Negroes |The Colored Boy Store | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads

Sunday, December 9, 2018

Cooking with Ree Ree: 5 of Aretha Franklin's Best Cooking Moments

As we dust off our BeBe and CeCe Christmas cassettes and unfurl The Matching Kwanzaa Skort Sets to commemorate yet another year of post-Teen Summit life, let us pause to raise a celebratory smoked turkey leg in remembrance of a beloved icon who spent decades cultivating her genius and sharing pot liquor-soaked soul, from down in her honey-glazed diaphragm, with the world.

Much has been said and many good and flimsy tributes speak to the magnitude of Freakum Pantsuit Hall of Famer Aretha Louise Franklin’s brilliance and musical mastery. But forget ye not her culinary offerings. As impassioned as she was in her vocal wizardry, so, too, was she in her love of a good gravy.

With holiday gathering season upon us, courtesy of the queen, if you haven’t had a collard green-inspired restraining order filed against you or been demoted to napkin duty for Six Major Holidays for shameful macaroni and cheese, here are some soulful delights guaranteed to make you the best +1 since Big Boi.

Thursday, November 29, 2018

EVENT: Join Jay in Los Angeles 12/13 for An Extraordinary Evening

LOS ANGELES FOLKS:

Join Jay for a night of food, fun, and fellowship as we come together to lay the groundwork for the much needed wholesale changes necessary to achieve equitable treatment within the podcast industry.

Whether you're already a podcaster or considering becoming one, this event serves as an excellent opportunity to network, collaborate, and exchange resources and information with other talented podcasters of color in a diverse and inclusive space that often times doesn't exist.

RSVP HERE