Rikki La Rouge

Before I continue with the subject at hand I want to write a buyer beware advisory to consumers who might be purchasing this product in the future: BLK. This brand of designer water should no longer be available for public consumption. BLK. water is nothing more than water with black dye added to it. The first, last, and only time that I drank it my stomach was upset and it made me sick and nauseated.

Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes was taken from us much too soon in a tragic and fatal car accident while she was in Honduras, doing mission work and going on her own personal and spiritual cleansing retreat. She has earned her angel wings and entered into Hip Hop Heaven as well as access into every other wing in Heaven. Left Eye is, was, and forever will be one of the founding members of TLC. What I will always love about her is she was fiery, unadulterated, pixie, tom boy, original, bombastic, real, and in your face! I learned a lot more about TLC that I did not know when I watched their official movie and their own Behind The Music on VH1. Left Eye, like the rest of the group, was a fighter and a survivor who defied the cards that she was initially dealt by life and the hands of fate to go on to become part of one of music's most successful acts. The contributions made by Left Eye to the music world are undeniable and immense. She put the "L" in "TLC." As the rapper and emcee in the group, Left Eye provided the rhymes on all of TLC'S albums, songs, and the songs that became hits for the group throughout their career. It really was not fair that on some of the songs where Left Eye provides the rap lyrics and verses, their label had put out and certain radio stations opted to go with the no rap version. Left Eye is one of my favorite emcees. Her flow, delivery, and skill were second to none. Plus she had a very distinct sounding voice. Before her tragic passing, the group was publicly feuding and Left Eye was getting ready to go solo, she released a solo record called SuperNova. T-BOZ and Chilli carry on both Left Eye's legacy and the legacy of TLC.

I have smoked marijuana and gotten high from it but at this stage I have to ask who hasn't? My reasons for trying it were all of the usual and obvious motives to those that would be seen as being not so obvious. Beginning with the obvious reasons such as wanting to get high for the first time, wanting to fit in, simply wanting to try it to see if it would in fact somehow change you, expand your consciousness, and take you on a head trip thereby changing your whole perspective on life as we know it to be. Contrary to the stigma that marijuana has had placed upon it, marijuana really is a harmless herb that is the main subject of 100% of stoner comic duo Cheech and Chong's material. Hemp, which is another name that marijuana is known as, is used to make clothing and I have worn clothes made from hemp. If I do say so myself, the fabric it makes is very soft and it has an excellent quality. People are going to always find a way to use marijuana so it should just be legalized across the board. I am not making a groundbreaking revelation on the subject, it's just a matter of time before it is legalized. I have always been one who supports the legalization of the substance. In a previous article about an unrelated subject, I said that the hippies are right about everything including marijuana and other mind altering drugs. I consider myself to have hippie tendencies and be a hippie in the true sense of the idea. During the course of my existence on this planet I have eaten Kush Kakes which are delicious chocolate brownies that are made from hemp, and I have also smoked bongs before.

Currently, as I write this piece, the remaining members of the trio TLC, T-BOZ, and Rozanda "Chilli" Thomas are soon going to release their farewell studio album. Staying true to Left-Eye, her spirit and essence, T-BOZ and Chilli guarantee that Left-Eye will absolutely be felt on the album. TLC is one of my favorite female musical acts. I have been a fan since 1995, which was the year their album Crazy Sexy Cool dropped. Some of my favorite songs on the album are songs that let the listener know to always be careful around fake people with hidden agendas, hence the name of the song "Case of The Fake People." There is also a great cover of the Prince classic "If I was Your Girlfriend," first heard on his 1987 album Sign O' The Times. TLC, on their version, sing in a flattering falsetto the way that Prince had done in the original version. Another song that is memorable is a ridiculously hot and sexy slow jam about having a one night stand called "Red Light Special." "Creep" is another classic from the album; it's about a conflicted girlfriend who is cheating and doesn't know if she should tell her boyfriend. "Waterfalls" is their most popular song, it addresses the AIDS and HIV epidemic and the problems faced, as well as the consequences of street life.

"Thoughts" is a book collection of poems, essays, and pictures written by Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, lead singer of TLC. She is known for her smoky and sultry yet unadulterated vocal stylings on all of the group's legendary albums. Actually, one of TLC's biggest hit songs was written by T-Boz and first appeared as a poem in "Thoughts" called "UnPretty". It was written about the unfair standards and pressure placed upon people to look a certain way, to adhere only to a certain standard of beauty. The song was well received.

Being Liberal and political correctness used to mean something unlike what the movement has become today. The movement was once an absolute good, it used to be about treating everyone across every race, ethnicity, social standing, sexual orientation, ability, and disability, religion, etc. fairly and with the utmost respect. Also it was about celebrating what makes us different from one another and at the same time what makes us alike in commonality. Political correctness also means not using derogatory and prejudice words and speech against other groups of people. Liberalism and political correctness began as an extremely noble cause to bring racism, homophobia, fascism, anti Semitism, religious intolerance, prejudices, and all isms to their end.