Planet Blacksol

Welcome to Planet Blacksol. Here you will come into my mind, heart, and soul. Enjoy.

[blacksolmann-blog]

Career Complacency

I’m not the one to sit still. I used to be this type of person. When I first started my career I was unsure as to what I was getting into. I honestly just saw it as a job. I had no experience with sales and after having some success I became stagnant. My accounts began to decline and I had no back up plan. I hadn’t spoken thoroughly to my manager about a different position, I did no networking, and outside of an Advertising certificate I hadn’t built any skills to build my resume. I was fortunate enough to find a role I wanted. I shadowed a few folks, did a couple of interviews, and bam the position was mine. This position was different though. I wasn’t going to wait to build upon my career. Early on I spoke to my manager and I seized opportunities to develop my career. I’m currently going on 5 years with my organization and I can honestly say that I am constantly learning new skills and engaging in activities that I believe will advance me in the future. 

I think it’s highly important to not become complacent in your career. Don’t give it up on your dreams and don’t give up on a job that makes you happy. You spend so much time at work and being miserable isn’t acceptable. It also isn’t acceptable to work with the same job for several years unless you’ve reached your peak and you love it. Exercise your ability to push the limits and excel. Step outside of your comfort zone and never accept stagnation. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Desire for Small Town Trips

A couple of months ago I took a trip to Dubuque, Iowa. My girlfriend and I landed there to drive to Galena, IL for a romantic weekend getaway. We recently had planned to go to a cabin but by time we started planning everything was sold out so we settled. When we got to Dubuque we immediately realized that Uber and Lyft did not exist. We didn’t freak out, we called a local cab company that charged more than I ever paid for an Uber but we didn’t mind. We were among beautiful nature and nice people. We checked into our whirlpool suite with a fireplace. We were welcomed to strawberries, cookies, and champagne. After visiting Wal-Mart for essentials (read whiskey) we decided to explore the town. We went to a karaoke bar and had so much fun singing a few songs and socializing with the locals. The next day we had an amazing breakfast complimentary of the hotel. We then went a winery downtown Galena before going to an amazing dinner also complimentary of the hotel. The next day we checked and went to a pumpkin patch before catching our flight. 

I’m a big city guy. I love my city Chicago. I love the hustle and bustle, the big lights, the skyscrapers, and the overwhelmingness of everything, but it’s nice to take a break from that every once and a while. A small town like Galena offers this and it can be incredibly satisfying. For this reason I think it’s important to visit small towns and to get a feel for the hospitality they offer. Smile at people, embrace their scene, and yes eat the homemade biscuits and gravy. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Dear, Black Internet

Dear, Black Internet

I’m not sure where I would be without you. There have been many of days you have given me smiles that I’ve needed. Black Internet how did you manage to make Arthur relevant again? And Black Internet how did you turn fashion store accessory into a trend? And Black Internet how did you take a church sermon and turn it into a hypnotizing song? There are some many days at work, so many days when I see negativity on the news, so many days that I’m in a bad mood and you lift me up. How did you know that I needed you today? I really do wish that Black Internet was around since the beginning of time because we would have had a ball. Thank you for the great content Black Internet.

[blacksolmann-blog]

PL-ZEN - Restaurant Review

I recently stopped in to PL-ZEN in the Pilsen neighborhood for Brunch. I had been here a couple of different times before. Once while waiting for a Los Lonely Boys concert and another time to go to a Friendsgiving nearby. I sat at the bar and asked about any specials. They had a brunch mimosa package where for $25 you could order a brunch entree and get 3 mimosas. Sold! I took a sip of my first mimosa and perused the menu. I came across the chorizo skillet with red onion, sweet corn, serrano peppers, chihuaha cheese, and two eggs. My food arrived hot. I was on my second mimosa and had built up in appetite. I dived in and tasted brunch deliciousness. the chorizo and serrano peppers gave the dish a spice and the sweet corn and red onion added sweetness to balance it out. The chorizo was crispy and full of flavor. The fried eggs that sat on top were perfect. I continued to chow down as I encountered my third mimosa. I was in brunch bliss. I ended brunch with a cucumber and mint gimlet which had one of my favorite spirits, mezcal. As I left to ride home in my Uber I felt thoroughly satisfied with my experience. Please visit PL-ZEN if you’re ever in the westside community. They have an awesome beer selection, well thought out cocktails, and good food. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Halloween Horror... Sort of

So this year for Halloween I decided I was inspired by my girlfriend. Although I couldn’t spend it with her one thing I could do was match her outfit. We decided to dress up as ninjas. Before going out and buying my costume I decided to research several places. I came across this great package that included an open bar and appetizers. I ran out to get my costumed, pre-gamed, and returned home to get dress. 

I called an Uber with my brother and arrived at Arbella in River North. The establishment was beautiful. We walked in to a place that wasn’t very crowded. We were not greeted and no one was in Halloween costumes but us. We inquired about the Halloween package and a waitress went to inform a bartender. We received our wristsbands and found seats. Unfortunately, we arrived later than expected and found ourselves looking to overcompensate. Combine that with a staff more eager to server customers paying full price and you get an interesting night. I will say that the drinks made were amazing, the food ate was enjoyed, and I would definitely return under different circumstances. But I would never come back for another Halloween. Halloween should be fun, festive, and exciting. My next Halloween destination will exude these characteristics. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Presidential Election

I know I know, the election was weeks but it’s finally setting in and I’m settling down. Like a lot of people in this country I was shocked when Donald Trump won presidency. Hell, I was shocked when he won the primary and even when he announced he was running for president. When the results came out I was angry, confused, and stunned. I went to my Facebook page and posted several statuses making jokes because that’s how I cope with things. Since a few weeks have passed it has all settled in and even with the constant negative media around it I have to say that it’s not the end of the world. This isn’t the first time the Republicans have had control. I do understand that the fears are real but I also believe that media builds upon these fears to drive up readership and views. With Bush, Obama, and now with Trump as the President-Elect my life is inherently the same. Sure there are policies that will impact me but I’m still taking the same route to work everyday. I know people are scared and I get it, change brings about fear sometimes. I can’t say that I’m for Trump and I don’t know if I’m willing to give him a chance just yet, but I can say that I truly believe that we will be alright. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

What I’m Thankful For

With the scent of Thanksgiving turkey still fresh in the air I thought I would share what I’m thankful for. 2016 has been amazing. It started off a little rocky and uncertain and I don’t know if I made the best decisions but I love where I’m at. My career is going well. I’ve been at my job for 4 and 1/2 years and I stuck with and grind through and I feel like that has paid off. I’m in a great position, I’m getting recognition I wouldn’t have dream of in years past, and I’m enjoying the work I do. My love life started off a bit rocky but thanks to my current girlfriend I couldn’t be more happy. I am so thankful for her and I am so glad that I got the opportunity to spend this Thanksgiving with her. I hope there is more to come and she is truly a blessing. I’m thankful for my amazing family. I don’t know what I would do without them. I almost lost one of my brothers earlier this year when I wave took him while he was out in Miami. He couldn’t swim and thought he was a goner. I understand that it’s important to cherish every moment with family. I was able to make it down to my hometown of Houston and see my older brother, uncle, and dad. I’ve been on several trips this year. Something I couldn’t even imagine last year. I feel great, I’m healthy, I’m happy. Life is amazing. I feel extremely fortunate and blessed and I thank God for such an amazing year. I’m looking forward to 2017 :). 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Church Booty

I recently attended a concert at The Chop Shop. For anyone that knows me they know I’m an avid concert goer. Mainly of local acts. This particular night I saw a group by the name of Church Booty. The group consist of 8 band members (A guitarist, a bassist, 2 people on keyboard, a saxophone player, a drummer, someone on trumpet, and a lead singer). There wasn’t much of a crowd but the performance was surprisingly good. 

I’m a huge avid of promoting local talent. I do understand that in the music industry there’s so much clutter that it’s hard to breakthrough. In this day and age anyone is capable of making music. I get it. Why deviate from what you already love? The thing is there is so much music available that are ears have not had the pleasure to listen to. If you just listen to the radio and listen to nothing more then you are doing yourself a great disservice. Step outside of your comfort zone and go to a random show one day. The next time you buy tickets to see an artist you love come early to see the opening act you don’t know because it’s a possibility they may blow you mind. 

I challenge you to do this. Go to wherever you go to find events in your city. Find a concert that’s fairly inexpensive and buy tickets. Go, grab a beer or a cocktail, and vibe out. Exposed yourself to something new, you may like it.  

[blacksolmann-blog]

Nana - Restaurant Review

I consider myself somewhat of a foodie. Of course with the way my metabolism works I can’t go out to eat all of the time and most of my meals consists of grilled chicken and veggies, but at least once a week I like to venture out into the foodie paradise of Chicago for my fix. On this particular Sunday I decided to visit Nana in the Bridgeport neighborhood. Nana services New American fare and touts themselves as being local, sustainable, and organic. With such items as empanadas and baked chilaquiles it was clear to see the Latin influence at Nana. I sat at the bar and decided on the Huevos Rancheros. The food was amazing. I literally scraped my plate clean. The chorizo had a kick to it. The poblano cream sauce was delicious. The guacamole was fresh. 

Nana is definitely a restaurant I would recommend if you’re ever in the bridgeport area. The staff is friends, there’s outside seating during the warmer days, and they have good menu options. I will certainly return. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Black Love

I’ve recently began listening to this podcast titled Historically Black. One of the episodes I listed to was called “Black Love Stories”. One of my brothers recommended and I figured I would take a listen on the commute to work. On that 30 minute train/bus ride I had an awakening. I’m in a relationship currently with an amazing, beautiful, loving woman and love has been on my mind and at the age of 28 with that comes the thought of marriage. Marriage didn’t work for my parents. They’ve been separated or divorced half of my life and while they were married I don’t have the fondest memories or recall this romanticize love a lot of us dream about. The same goes for the rest of my family. There’s a lot more single adults then long happy marriages from my point of view. My girlfriend’s parents have been together for over 30 years. When I heard this that gave me hope that two people can make it. When I heard this podcast I had no doubt that it was possible. Black love doesn’t get the respect it deserves. We hear about so many broken homes and single parent households. We here about high divorces rates across all races. We don’t talk about Black love enough and recognize its beauty. 

The podcast showcased different stories. Two about husbands and wives who had been married for years and raised a family together. The last story was about a lesbian couple who had to fight to be able to express their love. It touched on how the black community can be the least accepting of homosexuality. I feel we have to accept all love and be willing to express it, share it, promote it, expose it, talk about it, and cherish. Black love is an amazing thing and I want more of it. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Hala Kahiki Lounge Review

I was in Rosemont for the Kanye West show and was looking up different restaurants to visit. I have a great love for tiki spots. Can you beat thoughtfully crafted cocktails with a punch in fancy cups. When I saw Hala Kahiki wasn’t far from my hotel I decided me and my girlfriend had to go. 

We stopped in after shopping and was led to a table. It was the afternoon so the place didn’t have a lot of people. A waitress came and unloaded a menu with several options, almost too many. We looked and looked and looked and being two indecisive individuals we couldn’t make a selection. We ultimately decided to get flights, this way we could sample many options. I picked 5 and she picked 5 different ones. The waitress dropped off our drinks and we gave them a go. They were delicious with a kick. We stayed for a couple of hours working our way through our flight. The atmosphere, the service, the drinks were great. It was so good that we actually came back twice in one day. We decided to revisit the lounge after we left the Kanye show. If you have yet to go to a tiki bar you should stop reading this post and go. NOW!

[blacksolmann-blog]

Mariano’s in Bronzeville

Recently a Mariano’s was opened in Bronzeville. If you follow me on Facebook then you saw my excitement. I must admit that I have an unnatural love for Mariano’s. I love the layout, I love the selection, I love hot/cold food bar, I love that you can drink wine while you shop. To have a store like this on the Southside of Chicago is amazing. 

Areas like the Southside and Westside of Chicago often suffer from being food deserts. These are communities that don’t have a reasonable accessibility to proper groceries. They have to either order food from local restaurants and do their grocery shopping at grocery stores that don’t have the same products as a grocery store. This is part of trend of large grocery chains moving into more less privileged communities. Earlier this year a Whole Foods was built in Englewood. i love to see things like this happening. I do understand the concern of gentrification. I understand that gentrification can lead to displacement and unaffordable housing. But it’s lovely to have a store like Mariano’s in a black community. Sure we have a Jewels but it’s not as good. 

I visited the new Mariano’s on opening day after I got off work. Never in my life have I seen so many smiling black faces. Everyone seemed super excited to have such a beautiful store. It was absolutely packed. I walked around taking a look at everything and spent more than I usually do on groceries due to sheer excitement. I’ve decided this will be my go to grocery store moving forward. Please appreciate your local grocery store. 

[blacksolmann-blog]

Weekend Traveler

Two years ago I took my first flight. It was a trip to Puerto Rico. I was hoping I had a girlfriend at the time and I could take her but I ended up taking my mom. It was a great experience. We tried local food and we did excursions and it was an awesome Christmas gift to the woman that raised me. Since then my thirst for traveling has grown. Last year I only traveled once. I went to Tampa Bay for my then girlfriend’s birthday. This year one of my goals was to travel as much as possible. This year I have booked 12 round trips. 11 for leisure and 1 for work. 

I kicked off February with a trip to Vegas for Michael Jackson impressions, expensive drinks, and the strip. Next was a business meeting to discuss migrating to our organization. Norfolk, Virginia was a nice weekend getaway filled with relaxation and seafood. After that I headed to Philly for an amazing music festival before I caught an early morning flight back. I canceled a Dallas trip in the meantime. I then took off to Miami Beach and enjoyed the food tours and the night life. My next trip was to Indianapolis to visit my girlfriend. My first time in Indy was awesome. I ended the summer with two back to back trips to New Orleans and Houston. New Orleans had amazing food and large drinks. My brother and I went on an interesting music tour and got to really explore the city. The following weekend I went back to Houston for the first time in over 10 years. Houston is my hometown and it was great to see my family and to explore a side of Houston I wasn’t able to as a child. I have 3 more trips this year. Dubuque, Iowa, Orlando, FL, and the Dominican Republic. 

If you can travel, Do It! There’s always a way. I use spirit, cheaptickets.com, cheapflights.com, Google Flights, and skyscanner.com to find cost effective trips and I book my flights months in advance. Exploring different cultures and areas is part of enjoying life. Become a weekend traveler today!

[blacksolmann-blog]

Kai Sushi: BYOB  Sushi

I’m a big fan of sushi. Next to loaded cheese fries and sour gummy worms it’s my go to comfort. The only thing I like more than sushi is BYOB sushi. I recently stopped by Kai Sushi in the South Loop. It’s one of my favorite sushi places in town. 

My girlfriend, my brother, and a friend went on a cool Sunday afternoon. It was a little after lunch and mostly empty. We grabbed a table and waitress greeted us with menus. we pulled out the Captain Morgan shots and pre-made margaritas we bought from the Jewel around the corner and sipped cocktails as we made are decisions. We got a West Town Roll, Unagi Roll, a Volcano Roll, and a Sunset Roll. We continued to sip our cocktails as we waited for the food the arrived. 10 minutes the rolls were delivered to our tables. I grabbed my chopsticks and dived in. This may have been the fact that I hadn’t had sushi in months or the alcohol but everything was amazing. It was so good that my girlfriend and I gave in to buying another roll. 

We sat in the restaurant for a couple of hours sipping cocktails and enjoying the conversation. If you’re ever in the South Loop I highly recommend Kai Sushi. You will not be disappointed. And don’t forget the wine!

[blacksolmann-blog]

My Walk Home

Today is probably the only day I’m not happy about getting out of class early. As I walked down the steps from the train I looked to see people peaking over the rails. I removed my headphones and heard blaring sirens. I saw flashing police cars, streets blocked off, and commotion. A firetruck sped through the intersection. Other police cars followed taking sharp turns. I quickly walked home googling “Chicago Shootings” to find nothing. I went to Twitter and searched...nothing. I refreshed the page. There it was. Another young black male killed Chicago. Taking his final walk home.  

[blacksolmann-blog]

The Beyonce Standard – Review of Kanye West at the All State Arena

A couple of weekends I go I attended my first Kanye West show. The Chicago shows were his first show since his wife was robbed at gun point. I’m a huge Kanye West fan. All the way from his producing days to The College Dropout to Graduation to Yeezus to the Kanye that we know today. Due to cost I skipped out on all of Kanye’s shows up until this point.  After seeing Beyonce give an amazing performance live earlier this year I figured spending extra money to see an artist could work in my favor.  The United Center pre-sale was sold out so I opted for the Rosemont show at the All State Arena and bought tickets for me and my girlfriend.

The night of the concert came and we were filled with excitement in our hotel room, playing Kanye West loudly, and singing along. We caught an Uber to the venue and waited in line. After about 15 minutes we were in. We were running late so we rushed to find out seats hoping we didn’t miss Kanye’s entrance. We got to our seats just in time. Kanye erupted on stage. He was on a floating set that he was chained too. Kanye West performed his most recent album, Life of Pablo, along with several other hits. He danced across the stage for an hour and a half solo taking some time to thank the audience.

It was a good show. You can definitely classify it as a Kanye West show from the floating stage, to the dark gloomy lightening, to the obscure video of him on the jumbo-tron. I expected more though. I now hold concerts to the Beyonce Standard. The Beyonce Standard is of high prestige. Once you see Beyonce live you really have no choice but to compare concerts to hers and if it doesn’t hold a light to it then it’s below expectations. When I go to concerts I want to see a live band, I want to see lights, I want to see images/videos that tell a story, I want to see choreography (if it fits), I want to see elements that make it an experience. I didn’t see this with Kanye’s show and this left me disappointed especially with it being a Chicago show. Maybe I set my standards too high for artists but I’m an avid concert goer and all I ask is that I feel a musical high when I leave a performance.

[blacksolmann-blog]

The Magnificent Coloring Day

Anyone that truly knows me will tell you how big of a Chance the Rapper fan I am. Ever since he released his first mixtape 10 Day, recordedduring his 10 day suspension from high school, I've been a fanatic, religiously listening to his music and attending his concerts. But thisshow different. This was the first Southside music festival. This was an event poised to break the U.S Cellular Field attendance record. Thisis an event in which Chance bought tickets back from scalpers to offer to his fans. Chance wasn't the only one on the bill. This festival included John Legend, Lil Wayne, 2 Chainz, and Alicia Keys as well.

I walked into the stadium post a surprise from Kanye West. The crowd was excited and it was still early. I settled into my seat and patiently waited for Chance the Rapper to take the stage. I saw amazing sets from John Legend, Alicia Keys, and a joint session from Lil Wayne and 2 Chainz. By this time night had fell. After a brief break in performances the crowd erupted as Chance hit the stage. He went through his entire new album and even played past hits. The energy in the stadium was amazing. Chance gave praise to the audience and to the city and encouraged everyone to not lose sight of the message his music. It was such an emotional and spiritual moment that I found myself in tears halfway through his performance. Chicago is a city that gets a bad rep. It’s a city that deals with so many issues so to see someone who loves this city so much and who does what he can for this city put together something that brought so many different people from Chicago together is a beautiful thing. I couldn’t help but cry tears of joy. 

I left the show feeling extremely satisfied. I love Chicago and it’s always great to see people do amazing things for this city. Thank You Chance The Rapper.