Adena Andrews.com

Head & Shoulders has taken out a $1 million loan to protect the locks of its spokesperson, Troy Polamalu. Troy grows his locks so long to resemble the powerful manes of warriors from his Samoan culture. For those warriors, hair symbolized strength and the ritual for preparing one’s hair for battle also helped prepare the mind, he says.  Troy has a 45 min pre-game routine for prepping his hair.  Troy found a way for something so simple, his heritage and his hair, to make millions for him. He could have cut it off to conform, but he stayed true to himself and got big bucks out of it. Mainstream America digs ethnicity and gets even more excited over the exoticism of it. So excited they would pay a million dollars to protect it. I see the excitement firsthand when I rock the natural at work. “OMG did you cut your hair, Adena? It’s so cute.” (yeah they dig me). If only I could turn my messy, nappy, natural hair into dollars……

Troy’s deal with Head and Shoulder’s deal got me thinking about some other hairstyles that should be insured for symbolizing so much about that person and their generation or just for the weirdness.

Luther Vandross- His curl never, never quite curled just right, but we loved him always.

 

 

Jermaine Jackson – The pure semantics of putting that style together with all that shoe polish, permanent marker and glue, then to carry it with confidence in public? That deserves some recognition.

 

 

Kid of Kid And Play – No one rocked the flat-top fade like Play. He became a symbol for a generation of folks who just wanted to get they freak on while their parents weren’t home.

 

 

Tina Turner: Forget the mullet, Tina’s hair was a full on party all the time! She gave black women around the country a chance to rock out. And little girls like me a reason to wear a sparkly wig on Halloween and run around the house singing “Rollin, Rollin, Rollin, Rollin” ( I didn’t know the rest of the words).

  

Venus and Serena Williams: These two little girls brought beaded braids out of the hood and to America. Yes Bo Derrick did it first on screen, but the Williams’ sisters were real girls, with real aluminum foil at the end of their braids. That’s authenticity right there. I know Bo Derrick didn’t rock the foil. The Williams’ sisters parents thought they looked adorable in those beads. Little black girls around the country got to see themselves in the Williams’ sisters.  Year’s later we also get to experience the “What the hell were our parents thinking?” feeling when we look back at pictures with those atrocious beads.

Patra - The dookie braid, which seemed to come in a set complete with gold tooth and gold door knocker earrings with your name written in the middle of them said you were an African queen and no one should ever call you out your name (finger snap and neck swivel). Kitchens everywhere smelled of burnt hair as “stylists” lit our souls and synthetic hair up to seal the ends of the dookie braids.

Prince- I want hair like this! Any MAN that can rock the Farrah Fawcett and still get chicks, gets respect from me.

Jennifer Aniston- Yes, I had to include my light skin sister in here. Here iconic style had everyone going in the salon asking for “The Rachel”.

Rihanna – If you cut your hair off, made it asymmetrical or at least thought about it after seeing how fly Rihanna’s hair looked raise your hand…. Yep, like I thought, everybody.

I went to my mechanic for an oil change and I found this on the table. Ouch for @KingJames . This is probably the third defaced LeBron James image I have seen. All have been out of Cleveland. The hatred is universal. Some folks don’t even know why they hate him, it’s just the cool thing to do now.

MY NEWEST PIECE ON AOL’S THE BVX.com

Tonight, HBO premieres it’s annual docudrama ‘Hard Knocks,]’ which follows an NFL team through training camp. This time, the New York Jets are at the center of the action. TheBVX caught up with Michigan-Wolverine-turned-Jets rookie Donovan Warren for the low down on life as a league newcomer.
How has NFL summer training camp been treating you?
It’s a different experience learning the defenses and picking up all the little nuances. I’m playing a lot faster, not doing so much thinking out there and getting more comfortable by taking it all one day at a time. I’m also learning in the film room, from my coaches and the veteran players.

What’s life like for a Jets rookie?

Carrying other people’s helmets and shoulder pads after practice. Those are definitely my rookie moments right now, but we have more to come. It’s probably like putting on a rookie show, and I’m doing all the dirty work. I’m a young buck right now who’s just working my way up. I know what it’s like to work. It’s not the easiest thing in the world, but I knew coming into this league it wasn’t going to be easy.

Does practicing on the campus of SUNY Cortland in upstate New York bring back memories of your Michigan days?

The dorms are a little bit nicer than where I stayed in Michigan during my freshman year. But it is a secluded little area, and I’m bonding with my teammates and learning the different personalities. I grew up watching some of these guys on TV and now I’m playing with them.

Who were you the most in awe of when you came to camp?

Playing next to Antonio Cromartie after I watched him while I was growing up. He’s a real big player, but he is really down to earth and willing to help. I said to myself, “Wow I can’t believe I’m playing with him.”

Roommates from hell and camp go hand in hand, so how’s your living situation?

I am rooming with Kyle Wilson, a cornerback. He is a Jersey guy, and he’s been my roommate for two or three months now. He is kind of like myself. He goes hard each and every day just trying to get better. Even though he was a first round draft pick, Kyle doesn’t act like it.

Are you excited about your HBO television debut in ‘Hard Knocks’? What was the experience like?

The first few days the camera men were at camp, you kind of noticed them. But after that, you really just forgot about them. So I have no idea what is going to be on that show tonight. I’m looking forward to it and see how they put everything together.

What is your worst fear about the show’s debut?

I really don’t know if I have a fear, but I do hope I’m on there doing my thing and representing my family right. My people and my parents will definitely be watching.

What couldn’t you survive training camp without?My laptop because my family is so far away, so I Skype a lot with my friends back home. My communication with my real close people keeps me grounded and focused. I’m not real big on Twitter or Facebook, so I’ve been focusing on camp and trying to get better.

What music gets you hyped for competition?

The Game and Snoop Dogg.

What’s been the biggest surprise about joining the NFL?

It’s a very difficult gam,e and at this level, everybody is a competitor and talented. It’s not easy to make it in the NFL and you have to be dedicated and work hard to stick around.

What kind of leader is your quarterback Mark Sanchez?

He’s great. He invited some of the rookies over his house for a barbecue. I played against him in high school, and he actually completed a pretty mean pass against me. That was the first time I ever really got beat, so I’ll never forget that. But now I have his gun on my team so I’m good.

Is coach Rex Ryan as “out there” as we think?

He’s really good at teaching and guiding us through this process. During certain parts of practice, he actually gets in there with us and plays quarterback so we call him Dan Marino. He’s in there tossing balls just like Marino.

As I watched the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame induction tonight I thought “Man I’d give my first born child to be there”. Here are some other sporting events that would be worth my seed (sorry unborn child. I’ll visit you on weekends though)

(no particular order)

1. Snow game Lambeau Field

2. Fenway Park

3. The New Yankee Stadium.

3. NBA Draft

4. NBA Hall of Fame induction

5. NBA Finals

6. Negro League Hall of Fame

7. French Lick, Indiana, Larry Bird’s old town. (as long as the KKK are on break or summin)

8. Dyckman Courts

9. USA World Cup Match

10. A Superbowl (not in NY. It’s my hometown but that ‘ish is too cold)

11. The new Basketball Hall of Fame. (been to the old one)

12. The United Center

13. The Field of Dreams field

14. An Iron Man. But I want to be in it!

15. Want to be in the NYC Marathon also

To Be Continued….

 

 

Just a cool article I saw on ESPN’s TrueHoop blog about how folks take sports way too seriously at times. LeBron James didn’t kill anyone and the city of Cleveland hasn’t experienced a mass outbreak of Cancer. Everyone will live. But from the way fans are reacting, it seems like the exact opposite.

Here’s a very normal video of an NBA player hooping it up with some little kids at some summer camp last week. There’s a regular mix of letting the kids do their thing, and then also wowing them with some dunks and showy moves — the things everyone in the building came to see.

Only … because it’s 2010, and the player in the video is LeBron James, this video comes to us in a blog post where every little thing he does is interpreted as further evidence of his poor character. Check out the commentary, with second-by-second breakdowns of his flaws, as if he only dunked in that game to show the five-year-olds he was so much better than them. I hope it’s a joke, but I’m just sure it’s not.

Writer Chuck Klosterman was fascinating on this topic in part one of his appearance on the B.S. Report. At one point he just says: “I feel kind of weird about being mad at LeBron for having a good life.”

At another point, Bill Simmons says that James clearly doesn’t understand “the life and death part” of sports.

Klosterman’s reply is: “There is no life or death part, Bill. If you believe a sporting event is life or death, you might as well believe in unicorns.”

And when Simmons points out some people believe in sports that way, Klosterman replies that some people believe in unicorns.

It’s a fun exchange, but it’s also a point that cuts very deeply into how we think about sports.

So, do you believe in unicorns?

Today I woke up and saw that Brett Favre was done. Finito. Gone. Retiring. Brett Favre came out of denial and realized he could no longer play football at an elite level and I also came out of denial. I came out of denial and realized that my status as the kinda-sorta maybe could be his girlfriend one day was never going to change. I could never BE with this man because… well if I knew that I wouldn’t be writing this post eating cookies with tears and snots coming down my face while listening to sad Beyonce songs (YOU HAD ME ATTT HELLOOO! HELLOOO!)

I also found out that week that I was the back up quarterback. Now, I know Im built to shine and while my game is a little unorthodox, I get the job done. So why was I being replaced? I mulled over it for a week. I discussed my current team situation with other teammates over drinks and manicures. Then I finally lifted off my helmet, my mask, shed plenty of tears and lots of snots and I handed in my letter of resignation. I was a bit classier than Favre, instead of  a text I sent an email. (Hey! We live in the digital age, sue me.)

It hurt. It still hurts. Stings. But I was in denial. In denial that I was the only quarterback. And that my commitment to the team wasn’t that serious. When really, I was probably a month away from tattooing the team logo on my bicep. I was in denial. I wasn’t even really on the team. I was in this eternal tryout. And coach knew that. He just had me running drills for the fun of it. I had fantastic agility, speed, and awareness but it just wasn’t enough. I was also young, moldable able to be loyal to the team and not go ring/money chasing. Truth is nothing would have ever been enough for this coach. But I didn’t want to believe that. Denial is real… I feel you Favre.

This wasn’t the only thing I have been in denial about lately. I was in denial that I was being taken advatage of by some people extremly close to me. I was in denial that a strange man had been driving my car around without my permission.  It took the police showing up in my driveway and me wanting to clothesline someone to realize I was in danger. Denial was a state I lived in, actually I was the friggin mayor.

NOT ANYMORE! Nah UH! My new game plan is to see folks and situations for what they really are. When that winner’s intuition (yes not women’s but winner’s because that’s what I am. A WINNER) kicks in I’m going to listen to it from jump. People and situations often show you who they are at first sight. But then you try to mold them into what you want or mold the situation into something that doesn’t seem so crazy. And all the while you are looking like boo boo the fool. So to take a line from Arizona Cardinals Head Coach Dennis Green “They are who we thought they were!”

Folks are exactly who you think they are. Don’t second guess your gut. Don’t sit there and wait for all the facts because A) all the facts will never be there for you. No one is ever going to show you their whole playbook. B) What’s the worst that could happen if you jump before you have the facts? You’re wrong? You’re going to feel even more stupid if you sit around and get dooped.

Remember when it comes to those shady folks hanging around you that you don’t quiet trust, or that coach who doesn’t acknowldege your skill while every other team thinks you’re a first round pick, quit them.

Take the inititiative to hand in your letter (text or email) of resignation, and move on to greener pastures where you can cultivate yourself as a player. You can lick your wounds and come back even stronger.

I know you didn’t you could quit all together? Favre ain’t no quitter, he will probably retire and return two times before I post this. And I’m no quitter either. If you didn’t know, I suggest you ask somebody.

Sketchers and Reebok have emerged as leaders in the shape-up shoe industry, or what I like to call the “lazy man’s shoe”. They are sneakers geared toward women that are designed to contour the wearer’s legs and body and make them more fit. Just by walking! However the leader in fitness shoes, Nike, is not buying it.  Check out this CNBC article about how NIKE is in no rush to join the shape up craze. And I’m with them. Shape-ups seem like another weight-loss, get skinny quick without sweating scheme that Americans love.

I can just see it now, folks spedning 80 bucks on shoes walking around while eating an ice cream cone and wondering why their cellulite isn’t disappearing. You gotta put some sweat equity in girl.

Research has also proven that the sneakers have a slight chance of injuring the wearer. Nike is not in the business of grounding athletes but making them fly. The Shape-Up shoe is against Nike’s ideals. And if I wanted a shoe that would injure me while working out I’d wear my 5 inch stilletos.

To combat this Lazy Man’s shoe craze, Nike is doing what it does best, marketing and encouraging women with a shoe that helps ease the blow of training activities that women normally do. A shoe that will stop me from twisting my ankle while boxing, SIGN ME UP!  It will also activate your muscles while doing squats, lunges and other fitness classes so you can get fit faster.

Now if only they can have a sneaker that won’t ruin my pedicure….

 

I just came back from a whirlwind of action at the 2010 National Association of Black Journalists convention in San Diego. NABJ has helped me out a great deal in my career and actually helped me get my first gig at ESPN The Magazine just 2 weeks out of college. But it also gives me a renewed sense of ” I got this” when I return to work after the convention. My work ethic meter is always on 10 after a conference.

This was my first time at a conference with a full-time job and representing Turner Sports was amazing. Folks had an honest respect for what I do and my company. Ms. NBA.com was my nickname all weekend. I also caught up with my mentors/folks I look up to Marc Spears, A.Sherrod Blakely, Jemele Hill, Chris Broussard, J.A. Adande, Michael Eaves and so many more. If you don’t know who these folks are, I really don’t know what you are doing on my blog.

And of course I partied! Journalists tend to live very stressful lives so when we let our hair down, WE LET IT DOWN! But like I told young kids looking for jobs, I didn’t drop it like it was HOT at the parties, I dropped it like it was LUKEWARM. A friend of mine told me, don’t do anything memorable at these things and you will be fine. Afterall, these are your colleagues and potential employers. ACT RIGHT! Shout out to Marc Spears and the NABJSTF for throwing another banging party. Even Clipper Darrell was there!

I also got to speak on a panel about “Internet Etiquette”. I advised folks on how to avoid the pitfalls of twitter and facebook but also how to use it to build their brand. I still couldn’t believe folks were listening to me! Me! The girl who eats Capn’ Crunch for dinner while watching 30 for 30. But I guess that’s what makes my story so special and real. Check out pics from the panel. Scary, because I look just like my mom… Who is fierce! (Hi mom!)