i AM the come-up KING!

Me and my homies stay challenging each other on our sneaker come-up skills. Everytime we put forth a challenge, we'll set up different rules. Last weekend was the "under 21" competition: 3 stores, you have to find something under $21.00, and it has to be your size and something you'd rock. Our first stop was Nordstrom Rack. Now as usual, NR is known for having some ill kicks but under 21? Not so much. Although they're not my first choice, I keeps a few pairs of Chucks on deck, for them days i'm chillin at the beach (yes NJ, Chicago has a beach!). I didn't think I would find anything here until on my way out I spotted these. Nice!My homie, Dre found nothing at Nordstrom, so this gives me one up on 'em....I found some other kicks at nice prices, but not under 21, I'll put those up in another post.
Next stop, Marshalls! we got to Marshalls and they definitely had some 'Lo heat, so I picked up a couple I.T.'s and then stepped to the shoe dept. to get to the official business. Suprisingly, they had quite a few nice kicks in the building: adidas Oregon's, Dunks, all types of dope stuff, but nothing @ the right price for me to win, so I paid for the I.T.'s and bounced...off to AJWright. I KNOW I'ma find something there.

You know when you go to AJ Wright or Ross, you have to look over the entire shoe dept. and not just section with your size. The employees there just don't give a cot damn about order, so I go straight to the size six and work my way up, 'cause you never know. Sure enough, soon as I walk in, I spot these size 12's in the size 8 section. Nice shoe, old school look to mash up with my vintage 'Lo, I take a look inside the shoe at the price.....$14.00. $14.00?!?!?!? GTFOH!! COPPED. Of course that was the only pair, and nothing else better, otherwise, I woulda doubled up. I win. Dre, you lose with them Reeboks. I am the come-up king, B!!

Today's Kick Pick - STÜSSY x PRO KEDS

Growing up on the Jersey Shore, you absolutely HAD to be into skateboarding and the lifestyle. There were skateboard and surf shops everywhere, so at some point, you had no choice but to embrace some part of it. I always took the train to NY for my hip hop game, but I loved the way skateboard companies like Ocean Pacific, Vans and Stussy put it on. Mixing and matching was my crews thing, and we would stay stuntin' on cats. Nowadays, I dont fux with skateboarding, but every now and then, I'll catch an item that I'll have to cop for the books. These STÜSSY X PRO KEDS collabo's are definitely firestarters! that I caught in San Diego a few years back. I'm still looking to find the other two colorways to complete the set, so if you see 'em, get @ me!

I caught this STUSSY x JAM HOME MADE wallet chain last year from my Hong Kong connect. I took a couple links out and made it into a bracelet that murders 'em every time, B!

MINDY'S HOT CHOCOLATE - FTW

On the summer weekends I normally put something on the grill for me and my babygirl, but with us being cooped up in the crib lately, we decided to try a different move. For Saturday brunch, we met up with her cousin, Monique and go to one of my favorite nightime dessert spots in Chicago, Mindy's Hot Chocolate, located in Wicker Park. With the Wicker Fest being held this weekend just 2 blocks away, this turned out to be a straight up win. When I'm in that area, I normally stop by Hot Chocolate and pick up a few goodies to bring home, and they always wrap the fancy box with a brown bow, which definitely puts on win status for the night. See, the pastry chef, Mindy Segal is a nominee for the James Beard award for Outstanding Pastry Chef, and to those that don't know, that means she's kinda like a big deal.
Walking into this place, there is a huge waiting area, where there's a showcase of some of the sweets just to get you familiar, leather seats,
and a beautiful painting of a woman's ass. On top of all that, the music selection is a go!
I ask you, what guy doesn't want to wait in this spot? Needless to say I sat back and quietly enjoyed the artistry while the ladies chopped it up.
After a quick 7 minute wait we were seated. No need to look at the menu, I already knew what I wanted, I just waited for the ladies to decide. I went with the Warm Doughnuts and French Press Coffee for starters, then the BLT. Both girls went with the Grilled cheese and the Black & Tan Chocolate drink, served with house made marshmallows. The doughnuts came out first and did not disappoint. They were little too hot to handle, which is a good thing, otherwise I woulda' scoffed them all down in 10 seconds flat. I would've had them with just the cinnamon and sugar dust that was sprinkled on them, but they came with raspberry preserves on the side that made them even tastier. Only gripe, the serving of 4 was not enough. Being in the coffee business for a few years, I'm a coffee snob, so I'm crazy critical of coffee. Most restaurants use good coffee, but normally the wait staff doesn't take the time to serve it right. It's always either cold or burnt, sometimes both, but never like a coffee house or busy diner. Mindy's french press coffee was definitely top notch - hot, fresh, delicioso! If waiter would've asked if I wanted another, I would have said yes. It matched up nicely with the doughnuts, but as you can see, I ran out of coffee, so the leftover doughnut came home with the kid.
The sandwiches came out, and I was ready to get to business. Everything was fresh and upscale. Butter Lettuce, Tomato, Sugar Cured gourmet bacon, mayo, all on a toasted sesame bun. Me and my girl traded a half sandwiches so we could try everything. The BLT was good, but certainly not great. I'm not sure what didn't put this sandwich over the top, because it did nothing wrong. Maybe when I order a VERY simple sandwich at a restaurant this cool, my expectations are too high. But I wasn't totally let down, just not totally moved.
The Cheddar Melt on the other hand was bangin'! Aged cheddar on pumpernickel toast. Thats it. One bite into it and I knew it was serious business and not Cracker Barrel and Wonder bread. Cheese and bread done perfectly. right amount of crunch & perfect amount of cheddar. Both sandwiches came with a side shot glass of roasted tomato soup that I wished came in a bowl. A big bowl. Very tasty and spicy and matched up nice with both sammiches.

Overall, we enjoyed the lunch and as much as I would normally like to have a brewski or two, I opted out...I figured I'd catch a few at the Wicker Fest! On the way out, my girl went to the showcase and copped a few goodies for later on. For your buck, Hot Chocolate is not an everyday spot for lunch, but definitely one to keep in your books for dates and sweets for your sweet when you tryna make up! because you will get what you pay for. I will be back for dinner.

TODAY'S KICK PICK - G.O.A.T. SHOE - AIR MAX 1

I'm often asked, "Whats your greatest shoe of all time?" and the answer will forever be the same - The Nike Air Max 1, Red/White. When this shoe dropped, most cats thought the air bubble was a little too futuristic, but I was immediately drawn to it. I wanted to see how it felt to walk on a pillow of air. I went to Athlete's Foot® and tried them on and they felt good, but not as orgasmic as I'd imagined. But walking over to see how they look in the full length mirror on the other, I knew that this was THAT shoe. I looked at the saleswoman in the mirror and she had that look. Like she knew she had a sale. Like she knew I had the future on my feet. She was correct in her assumptions. I did not hesitate to pay her what I can remember was $100 dollars. That was my first too. $100 for a pair of kicks. I didn't dare tell my parents what I'd paid for them, since I was living at home at the time and my share of the rent was late.I think I had maybe 5 different outfits that were worked around these shoes, and everytime I wore them, somebody would always say, "I seen those in the store but they didn't look right, but now that I see them on somebodys feet, I may have to get 'em" or girls would say "You rockin' them sneakers right!". I guess thats where the "walking on air" concept came into play. Tinker smashed the game with the AM1, and while there are 100's of different colorways, the red/white/grey/black is at the top of the heap. I've gone through 4 pairs because the clean-up on the driver heel was, and still is, horrible. Today, I'm looking to cop the 5th pair despite that issue.
Me & the homie, SupaCee...circa 1989-90.

THE LO' DOWN - Blue Label for the summer!

Ralph is definitely official this summer with that Blue Label. But a buck 50 for a shirt? I had to wait until 'Lo.com marked this joint down, and I found a free shipping coupon code, so I finally went ahead and copped today. Next Monday can't get here fast enough!

I also copped the matching cap, FTW! not sure if I have any kicks for this to splash with this...any suggestions?$200.00 left in the budget to play with, so I went ahead and copped this one.I think I'll mash this one out with the Clydes I've had on ice for about six years. The Clydes that are out now are shaped funny, so I look forward murdering Chicago with these. With $150.00 left, getting on the #4 and heading to the Nike Factory Store sounds lovely right about now, B!

After 5 year hiatus.... RAP IS BACK!

As I take some time today out to rotate my IT stock and sneaker game from winter to get my thing on schedule for summer(Chicago has no Spring), Im listening to music and thinking to myself---Rap is Back. That's right, it's back. and don't tell me it never left because it did. It was on hiatus for 5 years and came back this week. Sure there were dope MC's here during the 5 year stretch, but were specialty or boutique rappers. Like MF Doom, who is one of those that held it down during those 5 years, but you all know, Doom aint for everybody and we like it that way. It's the same with Ghostface, Joell Ortiz, Madlib, Pacific Division. That was YO shit and nobody elses, and you kinda liked it that way. It takes a different type of sound to move the masses. And that was void for 5 years. DJ's relied HEAVILY on old school to get a party into full swing.

Fast forward to April 2009, my New Year month... This, internets is a great time for rap. Last Tuesday I purchased the first two CD's that I've bought in a 5 years. Everything since 2004 has been Lemonwired or given to me and I don't check for mixtapes for the obvious reasons--DJ's put way too much emphasis on being the first to have a record without concentrating on the song having merit. Then theres the annoying verbage over songs, just to show you that their the first to have the song, or to place their bum ass patent on a song that they dont even like. Again, in the immortal words of the "Creator" one of the top 5 hip hop songs ever made, T.R.O.Y., Pete Rock..."exclusive sh*t, it really holds no weight." Word Is Bawn.

Here are the joints:Rick Ross- Deeper than Rap & Asher Roth - Asleep in the Bread Aisle I went out and bought these two CDs and they're the first CD's that i've purchased in 5 years and that gives me the authority to review them. I'll start with Rick Ross. Given the circumstances, this dude was SUPPOSED to fail. Hell, I WANTED him to fail. First he came on the scene with the Miami drug cartel tough talk, like most rappers do, which is totally some science fiction on all levels. We all KNOW this, don't we? He took that posturing a bit too far by saying he didn't like the way the multi-millionaire x5, 50Cent looked at him at a industry function one evening. Looked at him?Imagine that. A real bitchified way to create beef, 'specially from the "biggest boss that you seen thus far". 50, went on to expose Rick's hidden past as a former corrections officer. Imagine that? An honest living. god forbid. 50 also went on to inform us through hilarious internet videos that he will ruin Officer Rickys life by dragging family matters into the game. Makes for a great movie, in a CB4 kinda way. Ross answers with nothing. Nothing but vague denial, and the infamous "BAWSE!", and in the meantime, quietly works on a masterpiece of a CD. Upon hearing the first single, with its lush, air-tight production, and the slickest of slick talk, I was compelled to go out and purchase the joint, I spent the extra papes and copped the deluxe edition, and it did not dissapoint. I can't front. Remember, I WANTED this dude to fail. but cot-damn if he didn't do his numbers, and rightfully so. With tough talk and Dre-like production this dude wins. as some would say, "sonically cohesive"...whatever that means, shit is dope, kid!

Asher took a minute to grow on me, even still he did. His tribute to fraternity antics, "I love college" was clever and we could see it turning into an anthem for college kids. But upon hearing a couple more joints from the kid, I knew he was official. Party people got so caught up in tough talk that they can't feel this kid, so I knew going in that he was gonna do his thing, but it would not be easy. Also, you have to factor in the Eminem stans that really want this dude to BE Em. So once heard, they considered this dude soft and biter and discrace to white rapdom. White hardrocks mad this dude ain't near black. He's definitely none of those things. He's got his own steez, and as much as you want him to be Em, he aint. And bottom line, any dude that can bring the ladies back to the hip hop party is definitely official with that alone,B! Asher's album if definitely not classic, but damn sure better than most hip hop CDs that are out today and worth hearing and bonus DVD story is worth watching.

So, if comparisons are being made, then I'll say this--50, them Pimpin' Curly videos are funny as f*ck, but step ya' game up! you set it up for Ross to fail and he in turn made a monster of a CD that the Def Jam Machine is adding more fuel to. Em, you too! They say you always go left field with your first single, but that new sh*t is gahbij. hot gahbij. Asher is winning. All these drug stories and execution style murders on CD are falsehoods and lies, and it's all about how convincing your role is. Wood Harris smashed The wire, and this is why 2 years after the last episode, he walks down the street, people call him Avon, and are mad @ him for having his mans merk'd. You gotta do the same with your gangsta rap steez if your wish is to win...get in where you fit, B! Next up, Duo Live, MF Doom, DeLa, Jay Electronica.

Protect Ya' Kicks-Vol.II - SWIMS™

From past posts, you know how I am with protecting my joints. This product is a new addition to the upkeep of your kicks. Boom! Lets say you wake up one sunny morning to go to work, and decide dress your freshest, (on some casual Friday type sh*t), and to finish your mash out, you put on your exclusive suede or nubuck Dunks. You get to work, everything is cool, and since you are lookin' on point, you decide, like Fred Flintstone, once Mr. Slate sounds the horn, and you slide off the dinosaur's back, you'll be sliding into the local happy hour. What you didn't factor into the equation, is that you missed Al Roker's forecast this morning that there will be late afternoon April showers, and by the time you clock out and downstairs to the lobby, the showers are on full tilt. And you got on the nuevo suede Dunks. Damn.

Worry not, if you have this product. My friend at the Norwegian company, SWIMS®, have taken clunky grandpa galoshes and elevated them to the next level. I own two pairs of these, so I know...you will stay winning with a pair of the classics or for the snow, go with the Mobster. They come in flavors so you can actually style on 'em! You HAVE to keep a pair in your backpack or in the bottom drawer of the office desk, just as you would an umbrella. Speaking of which, SWIMS' umbrella game is official issue too! With the auto-up/auto-down button!?!? c'mon, B! Peep how functional that is, coming in from the rain and trying close an umbrella with one hand without getting soaked.
Hey Ladies!! SWIMS™ did not leave you out of the game either. With these joints, they got your shoe game covered with the Classic™ for the sneakers, the City Slipper™ for the pumps, and they'll be dropping these joints for the boot and half-boot in a minute! I peeped the bottom of the City Slippers, and it has a map of either NYC on one, and Paris on the other...how fly is that!?!?

So get your shoe game covered and cop a pair @ Sak's or go to swims.com and tell 'em DirtyJerz sent ya'!You hunted all winter and copped kicks with your hard earned money....may as well protect your investments!

Back In The Lab, B!!!

Just closing up my born day weekend, so its only right to start something on my new year. Its been a minute since I've done anything on this blog, but it was definitely a much needed break. Trying to write some goodness on a daily and make it readable is definitely no joke. I've been on my grizzly, tryna get my business right and family matters in order. As some of you know, I've been in the lab, working on the apparel archiving system and things are turning out nicely. I'll be keeping you posted on that as well...Patent is definitely pending...Word. Is. Bawn.

2009 is looking lovely thus far, and I'm gonna have sooo many things poppin' on this blog. I will definitely keep up the usual suspects, "the Lo' Down", the "Mash-Out", and "Word Is Bawn", but I will be adding many new segments, interviews, schwag-giveaways, etc. I copped a new Nikon and a HD camcorder, so at some point, DirtyJerz will go to video. I'm meeting so many interesting people in the Chi that it's only right that I visually document my travels.Also, during those 6 months, I've gone in for the win with shopping more than a little bit . My come-up game is even crazier these days, and I've found wild discounts on kicks and 'Lo all over the city that I'll be puttin' you up on. Next mission: Find a come-up on an iPhone or Blackberry.

Although I've been on a 6 month hiatus on blogging, I stays on the internets. I gotta give it up to cats that write the realest sh*t on the internets. My Google Reader is up to 60 blogs, that I follow daily. If I put a comment on your blog, you ARE that dude, or that chick, B! I'm also getting my twit-game correct, so check me on that- NuJerooz

Great to be back at it tho'!