found poem from a chat with jay z, warren buffett and steve forbes

Steve Forbes sat down for a conversation with Warren Buffett and Jay Z about success, hard work and philanthropy. It’s a wonderful portrait of two men from different generations comparing and contrasting their lives. I took a few notes and created a little sound bite found poem. Some of the words are direct quotes, some are the spirit of what was said, and some won’t make sense unless you watch the video. Guess who said what, and then see how many you got correct.

Start young. Be smart enough.
Don’t lose your shit.
Truth. Authentic. Discipline. Luck.
Do what you love. Don’t give up.
Embrace change. Practice. Take time to develop. 
Know what you’re good at and what you’re not good at. 

1 + 1 = 3. 
Try to create once in a lifetime experiences. 
The best boat you can have is your own talent. 
Education is important.
Emulate people you admire. 

Give back generously; you will have enough to live.

Thanks, Arian Moayed, who shared this video in the social feeds.

kibibi dillon

The first thing you need to know: her name is pronounced “Key-Bee-Bee.” Not Ki-Bye-Bye. Not Ki-Boo-Bee. It’s, Kibibi. Dillon. But more important than how to correctly pronounce her name is understanding her heart.

I was inspired by this fantastically funny and loving woman. Yesterday, she died. And to me, death means we’re experiencing it. We’re doing it. That thing we all have to do. Follow life into death. It’s inevitable, and yet it’s part of life.

Kibibi followed life. Wherever it took her, she went. Whether creating a salon in her living room, filling the Zipper with joy and dreams, or kicking it at a club with other comics, Kibibi lived her life.

We met about six years ago, and I remember watching one of her first stand up shows. For the past couple years, I had the honor of working with Kibibi and seeing her realize dreams. She’d always been funny. Knew how to MC an event. But she wanted to be a comedian. For real. She wanted to tell the same twenty minutes to people gig after gig. She wanted to clown the crowd. She wanted to hit eight clubs in one night. And she didn’t want to hear you think women aren’t funny.

When she moved back to California earlier this year, I missed saying good bye. That’s why I’m writing. To say thanks for inspiring me to follow where life leads. The night before she died, Kibibi did what she loved doing. She made people laugh. She made people think. She touched lives.

I challenge you to think about how you can touch others’ lives. Today, that is my meditation.

Thanks, Kibibi.

from my friends

I have great friends. My friends Aaron & Gayla and their beautiful daughter, Zaeda, fill my life with love and warmth. They are also huge cheerleaders when it comes to encouraging my artistic journey. They made a wonderful gift of pesto and bbq sauce for a closing present for soloNOVA, and I thought I’d share the quote they put into the note attached to the gift:

“Have you ever risked economic security? Have you ever risked a belief? I see nothing particularly courageous about risking one’s life. So you lose it, you go to your hero’s heaven and everything is milk and honey ’til the end of time. Right? You get your reward and suffer no earthly consequences. That’s not courage. Real courage is risking something that might force you to rethink your thoughts and suffer change and stretch consciousness.”

- Tom Robbins, Another Roadside Attraction