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A return to conventions! This Labor Day weekend, I'll have a booth at the Dragon Con Art Show in Atlanta, GA. Prints, scarfs, and originals, will be available for purchase.
Booth #19
Date: September 3rd - 6th
Location: Hyatt Regency Atlanta
265 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta, GA 30303
Level 3 (Grand Hall)
Info: dragoncon.org/things-to-do/art-show
I did not write this but I am reposting and sharing because it is how I feel right now too!! I hope you will take time to read it. I pray for our country everyday. Only God can heal our land! 🙏🏻
I’m so confused right now. I see signs all over saying black lives matter. I’m just trying to figure out which black lives matter. It can’t be the unborn black babies. It’s not black cops. They don’t seem to matter. It’s not my black conservative friends. They are told to shut up if they know what’s best for them by their black counterparts. It’s not the black children in Chicago that were killed last weekend with not the first protest or sign of rage. It’s not the black business owners.Their property does not mean anything. It’s not blacks who fought in the military. Their statues are destroyed by the black lives matter protesters with disdain. So which black lives matter again?
Black Lives Matter. OF COURSE THEY DO! Then when multiple black police officers and individuals were killed during the “peaceful protests”, I didn’t see any outrage? Black individually owned businesses burned to the ground. Silence. Deadliest weekend in Chicago. NOTHING!!
I can’t keep up. I just can’t. I’m exhausted trying to figure out what we’re all supposed to do, believe, and be offended and outraged by next.
Two months ago, First Responders were all the rage. In fact, they were heroes. We gave them free coffee, meals, and cheers as they drove by. Today, we hate them and want them defunded because they can’t be trusted. 4 weeks ago a taser was considered a deadly weapon in Atlanta and caused 6 officers to be fired. 2 weeks ago taser was stolen from a police officer and fired at him, but now it’s not a deadly weapon anymore.
Two months ago, truck drivers were the heroes, as well, for keeping America moving and the grocery stores stocked. Today we block the roads with protesters, drag them out of the cabs and beat them half to death.
Nurses and Doctors are still cool, for now. But they may be unemployed. They too are heroes, unless of course they truly believe all lives matter. Then they’re filled with hate and are part of the problem like so many others.
Just 45 days ago protests weren’t “essential” and were considered criminal, selfish and a murderous activity. Today they are gloriously critical and celebrated. All of the obvious criminal and murderous activities are simply ignored. If you protest about lock downs for freedom, you are selfish and you will spread a virus. If you protest, loot, and riot for social justice, you are a warrior and the virus fades to the background.
Trust the experts. No, not those experts. Don’t wear masks ... wear masks, but only good ones. Wait, don’t wear masks, wear anything as a mask. Never mind on the masks. Not sure, but if you don’t, you hate people because you could be an asymptomatic spreader. Wait. That's not a thing anymore?
For 3 months, NOTHING was more important than social distance. In fact, we gave up all of our liberties for it. We canceled schools, medical and dental procedures, canceled activities, closed businesses, eliminated every spring rite of passage from prom to graduation, denied people funerals, even at Arlington, and we wrecked the economy for it.
Then came social justice, and social distance was no more. Now things are more cut and dried though. A thousand people at three memorials for someone they never even met. It's a matter of "respect". But you can only assemble 100 or less people. I have friends who have lost family members but we’re not allowed to have a funeral.....
I’m really confused now. Look at the data, NO, not that data. Do the math. No, you can’t do the math like that. Only the experts can understand the data and math. What do you mean other cities/states/governors are interpreting the data differently? Pools are safe in Indiana, but not Michigan? Playgrounds are safe in your town but not mine? Amusement parks are safe in Florida but not Ohio, nor Michigan.
If you are silent you are part of the problem. If you speak, you are part of the problem. If you have to ask, you don’t understand. If you don’t ask, you don’t care.
It’s all so predictable, tedious, and exhausting. Nothing adds up. It’s one gigantic Math life problem, with ever changing denominators that I’m sure the media and politicians are eagerly ready to solve for us...until the next "crisis".
So, for now I pray. I pray God will heal our land and bless the United States of America! Bless us with Wisdom, Kindness, Gentleness, Mercy, Love, Peace, Healing. Things that Really Matter! We all Matter in God's Eyes!
(You can Copy and Paste. I did.)
I wanna let you know about one of the most important things you can do to protect yourself during this pandemic: GET TESTED. JP HRO has boots on the ground in LA, Atlanta and Detroit (more cities soon) offering free COVID-19 tests, no documentation necessary. Get more info on testing, volunteering and donating at coreresponse.org/covid19, and watch Sam Bayer’s tribute to the real superheroes watching over us. Testing saves lives. Get to it. #GetTested #COREcovid19
Dikembe Mutombo looked as if he'd been playing with the Philadelphia 76ers for years instead of hours.
Mutombo had 17 points, 13 rebounds and five blocked shots in his debut with Philadelphia as the 76ers beat the Detroit Pistons 99-78 Friday night.
"He changed the whole game with his defense and rebounding," said Philadelphia's Allen Iverson, who had 43 points and 10 rebounds.
Mutombo was traded along with Roshown McLeod from Atlanta to Philadelphia on Thursday for Theo Ratliff, Nazr Mohammed and Pepe Sanchez in the most-significant deal of the NBA season.
After the game, Mutombo looked relieved to be sitting in a folding chair with ice packs surrounding both knees.
He flew from Atlanta to Philadelphia late Thursday night, had a physical at 7 a.m., then arrived in Detroit at about 5 p.m. Friday.
"I need some sleep," Mutombo said. "But really, I'm so excited to be with this group of guys. They're all about winning and we have a great coach."
Philadelphia coach Larry Brown was glad that Mutombo was able to provide a lot of the same things as Ratliff.
"He rebounded and defended like he has his whole career," Brown said. "I thought he was terrific ... I think it's pretty remarkable what he was able to do under those circumstances."
Philadelphia has the best record in the NBA at 42-14. The Sixers extended their winning streak to six games.
Detroit's Jerry Stackhouse scored 22 points. Chucky Atkins had 12 points and Dana Barros added 10. The Pistons made just 37.1 percent of their shots.
Mutombo's status for the game was much more in doubt than the outcome.
The Sixers jumped out to a 16-4 lead and cruised to the win. Philadelphia led by nine points after one quarter, 12 at halftime and 17 after three quarters.
Philadelphia did not know whether Mutombo would be cleared to play until an hour before the game.
Minutes after Philadelphia Brown was informed that Mutombo was able to play, Mutombo walked into Philadelphia's locker room.
When Brown told Mutombo that he could play, the nine-year veteran asked "What do you want me to do?"
Brown left the decision whether or not to play up to Mutombo. He nodded his head to indicate that he wanted to play, and then turned to look for a uniform and basketball shoes to replace his brown suit and dress shoes.
On defense, Mutombo, the three-time defensive player of the year, hung around the lane to block and alter shots.
He ignited Philadelphia's fastbreak with 10 defensive rebounds and crisp outlet passes. There were times that Iverson was so far down the court that Mutombo didn't make it to halfcourt.
On offense, he set space-creating screens with his 7-foot-2, 265-pound frame. When Mutombo got the ball, his sky hooks and deliberate low-post moves gave the Sixers an option on the interior.
Mutombo started and played 36 minutes. He made 7-of-12 shots and 3-of-4 free throws.
"There is not much difference between the Sixers with Theo Ratliff and with Mutombo," said Detroit's Ben Wallace, who had 17 rebounds. "They both clog the middle and block a lot of shots. Theo is a little more athletic and Mutombo is a little bigger."
The game also marked the debut of Detroit's Corliss Williamson, who scored six points and grabbed four rebounds.
Williamson was traded by Toronto along with Kornell David, Tyrone Corbin and a conditional first-round pick to Detroit for Jerome Williams and Eric Montross. Detroit released Corbin and put David on the injured list.
"It was unfair to play him, but once Ben (Wallace) got those two quick fouls, I didn't have much choice," Detroit's George Irvine said. "It's been a whirlwind for him, but he'll be fine. He did a nice job out there."
Atletico Madrid vs MLS All Stars Highlights & Goals 2019
Atletico Madrid rode goals by Marcos Llorente, Joao Felix and Diego Costa to beat an MLS All-Star squad comprised of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Wayne Rooney and most of the league’s other top players Wednesday night at Exploria Stadium.
Here are three quick thoughts on the match:
The MLS All-Star Game itself was a dud
As far as all-star games go, this one lacked the pizzazz of the last two versions, which were played in packed NFL stadiums against clubs with higher international profiles.
The weather delay set the tone for the evening. Once the contest was finally underway, chances were few and far between for both teams.
Atleti’s Angel Correa got the game’s first opportunity early on, only to slice his open 10-yard shot well wide of Brad Guzan’s goal. But it took almost 20 minutes for the next one to materialize, when Rooney sent a screamer from distance just over Antonio Adan’s crossbar.
Replays confirmed Rooney’s argument that Adan got a fingertip to the effort, but referee Drew Fischer was unmoved.
The play for both teams remained disjointed, before and after Llorente beat Philadelphia Union keeper Andre Blake (who had replaced Guzan) just before halftime.
The home side fared better following the intermission, with LAFC’s Diego Rossi, Seattle’s Nicolas Lodeiro, Atlanta United pair Ezequiel Barco and Pity Martinez and World Cup-winning Chicago Fire center back Bastian Schweinsteiger all going close before Felix put the game away with five minutes to go.
As the traditional celebration of the league’s best players, the All-Star game still served its purpose. Local fans among the 25,527 in attendance enjoyed cheering hometown hero Nani and booing Guzan and his Atlanta teammates mercilessly. They saw a peach of a goal by Felix — even if goalkeeper Nick Rimando could’ve done better — and one by Costa, one of the European game’s best-known forwards.
Besides, in many ways the contest is secondary. All-Star week is a celebration of the domestic league itself, one that continues to produce news and buzz, two things MLS still struggles to do on a regular basis, during a relatively quiet time on the sporting calendar in the United States and Canada.
That’s important to remember, even on a night when MLS’s All-Star triumphs over the likes of Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Bayern Munich earlier this decade seemed like a distant memory.
No matter how many shots he took, Allen Iverson couldn't beat the Atlanta Hawks by himself.
Iverson scored 53 points, the fifth-highest total of his career, but Joe Johnson had 24 to lead the Hawks over the Philadelphia 76ers 111-108 on Friday night.
"I'm as disappointed as everybody else on my team," Iverson said. "We wanted to go into the holidays with a win. We'll have to get this one out of our system and come back to work."
Zaza Pachulia added a career-high 23 points, including the go-ahead free throws, and Al Harrington scored 22 for Atlanta, which won its fourth straight at home and its fifth in the last seven games overall.
"We shared the ball," Pachulia said. "We had 29 assists, and that's great. We shot pretty good also, 54 percent. It's tough to beat a team like that."
Iverson, who entered with a league-best 33.5 scoring average, had 21 points and six rebounds in the first half. He shot 17-of-31 and hit 19 of 21 free throws, the last coming on a three-point play that cut the Atlanta lead to 101-100 with 5:20 remaining.
He broke the record that Shareef Abdur-Rahim set at 7-year-old Philips Arena with a 50-point performance against Detroit on Nov. 23, 2001. Iverson has scored 50 in nine games, including a career-best 60-point effort in a 112-99 win over Orlando last Feb. 12.
Iverson gave the Sixers their last lead when his runner over Johnson and Pachulia made it 105-104 with just under 3 minutes remaining. Pachulia then made two free throws, then added a jumper for a three-point lead.
On Philadelphia's last five possessions, John Salmons missed two straightaway 3-point attempts and had a fast-break layup blocked by Atlanta's Josh Smith.
"When someone is scoring like that, everybody else isn't involved," Harrington said. "When they do shoot, they're ice cold, so that worked in our favor."
Iverson drove past Salim Stoudamire and Harrington after a steal for the Sixers' last basket, a layup that cut Atlanta's lead to 110-108 with 36 seconds remaining. Philadelphia had the ball with 2.4 seconds left when Iverson made an inbounds pass in front of the Atlanta bench to Chris Webber, who missed an 8-foot turnaround jumper.
"I told him before the play that if both men went to me, to go to the basket and get a good shot," Iverson said. "Things didn't go the way we wanted tonight."
Johnson made one free throw, then jumped to intercept Andre Iguodala's long pass from the Hawks' baseline.
Two free throws by Iverson gave the Sixers their biggest lead at 82-70 in the third quarter, but the Hawks went on a 26-9 run to go up 96-91 on Stoudamire's fast-break layup.
"We showed a lot of character coming back from 12 down," Atlanta coach Mike Woodson said. "I thought Iverson was tremendous tonight. He created so many problems for us, but I like that we found a way to overcome that and get the win. We had a number of guys step up in the fourth quarter."
Sixers coach Maurice Cheeks could tell a big difference when center Samuel Dalembert picked up his fifth foul with 9:02 remaining.
"Our defense is a lot better with Sam in the game, because he can block shots and rebound the ball," Cheeks said. "They're a jump-shooting team, with the exception of Harrington. We just have to get better in all areas defensively."
Game notes
Iverson stayed home Thursday night to take care of an undisclosed personal matter before joining the Sixers for the morning shootaround Friday. ... Philadelphia F Michael Bradley did not make the trip because his wife was expecting to give birth. ... Johnson had eight assists. ... Webber added 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Sixers. ... Iverson, who leads the NBA in minutes, played the entire second half
