—From love you come from, to love you must return

Introduction:

To truly heal your life, you must be willing to become a more conscious human being. You must bare your heart open for the higher form of conscious love, the love that enables you to forgive your enemies. It is through this enduring love, forgiveness, compassion, acceptance and understanding that you will truly experience peace and everlasting happiness.

My mother went through all kinds of hardship and trauma during the horrible Chinese Cultural Revolution. She managed to survive physically, but she became a very angry person.

In her angry state, which was very often, she would hit me and accuse me of being a ‘waste of space’, ‘a worthless piece of shit’ and allegations like ‘you have come to ruin my life.’

Never once did I believe her.

I looked at myself and I was always in awe of my own magnificence. I would think, ‘I am a human being, my life is precious. I can see, smell, hear, feel, talk, think and create. I can be anyone and do anything if I so choose. I have been given so many gifts, gifts that money cannot buy.

‘I am not a worthless piece of shit and I am not a waste of space, far from it. I worth just as much as everyone else and I am important. I matter.

‘I have a voice of my own. Only I can speak for myself. No one in the world can destroy me unless I allow them.

I can choose to give my power away and be destroyed, or I can choose to hold my power and create my desired destiny.’

This knowing of owning my life and that I must be the light unto myself was what got me through the darkest hours of my life; it was what made me ward off the negative impact of abuse; it was what made me rise above self-pity and respect my inner value.

I used to think my mother hated me, for why would she abuse me if she did not hate me? But one day, a deeper truth was revealed to me.

I was led to see that my mother only ‘appeared’ to hate me. Her hatred to me was a form of love, a twisted, retarded form of unconscious love, from a person with a victim mentality.

In an unevolved human mind, love and hate arise from the same fear, fear of not being good enough; they are just delivered in a different way. When she was buried deeply in her own psychological pain, and when she was trapped in her deep guilt, love was expressed as hatred towards the person she wanted to love.

This explains why people often hurt those they love the most. My mother abused me out of her fear of inadequacy. Violence is fear screamed out loud. All violent people are scared and weak people who have no inner power.

Once I had this realisation, compassion instantly arose in me towards my mother. Years before, I swore that I would never let my mother come near my children. But once I realised my mother’s inner suffering, I immediately brought her over to Australia to live with me in the hope that I could heal her.

By that time, I had a thriving natural medicine healing centre with ten practitioners working for me. I was a very successful Chinese Medicine practitioner, with a waiting list of four to six months. I used to spend ten hours at work and then come home to a mother who would criticise me for not folding my laundry properly.

Nothing I did was ever good enough for her.

One day, Mum was sitting at the dining table complaining about something I did not do right. Normally, when she complained, I tried not to look at her. But that day, I looked her in the eyes when she was complaining.

What I saw astonished me to the core of my being. I saw a profound sadness in her eyes, a really deep grieving kind of sadness as if she was mourning the death of someone she loved.

Suddenly, I realised she was mourning the death of her own dreams. She was born with the voice of an angel; she could have become one of the country’s best opera singers if it wasn’t for the revolution.

Her mourning had turned into a kind of bitter jealousy towards my success. The more successful I became, the more her bitterness grew towards me.

I went over and sat in front of my mother. I reached out to touch her hand, but she pulled it back quickly and stared at me with hostility as if I was an enemy who was going to attack her.

At that moment, I saw a very scared person, a person who felt so inferior that she had to pretend to be someone tough. The only way she could feel better was by putting someone else down in order to give her a fake feeling of being superior.

I started to cry. The realisation of her deep profound sadness opened my heart to feel her pain. I could feel every bit of it – all her broken dreams, regrets, pain, guilt, shame and remorse.

I felt her, all of her and I cried. Tears were flooding out uncontrollably. My mother pushed the chair back, stood up, then screamed at me, ‘What are you crying for, you worthless piece of shit?

‘You are the one who is successful. You are the one who always gets what you want, so what have you got to cry about?’ Her face was turning red and blue, her arms were waving in the air. She was raging.

I did not react to her rage, because the rage was just a cover-up for her deep-seated fear of inadequacy and a sense of failure. She judged herself so badly inside and all she was doing was projecting her judgement outwards towards me.

I realised it was not me she was accusing, but herself. When she screamed at me ‘you useless piece of shit’, she was screaming at herself – she was calling herself that, not me. I was just a fake target, as she was her own enemy.

With this understanding, I let go of all judgements against my mother. I walked to her, held on to her arms, looked her in the eyes, then slowly spoke out these words: ‘Mum, look at me. I love you. You are a good mum. You did the best you could.

‘I love you. I don’t blame you. I really don’t. I understand you, I understand your pain, and I want to take it away from you, but I cannot do that for you. You have to let it go yourself before it kills you.

‘It is right now killing your joy of living. What is the point of living like this? It hurts me seeing you hurting yourself. You must let go of the past. You can’t live in the past.

‘Today is a new day. Tomorrow is a new day. Let us look forward, not backward. Mum, I want you to live a long life. I want you to be at my children’s wedding. You are my mum. I am grateful for you. I wouldn’t be here if it was not for you. I am grateful for you, truly, Mum.’

With these words, she collapsed in my arms. I held her close to my heart for a long time while she let out her sorrow, pain, guilt and shame in her cry. She never called me ‘a worthless piece of shit’ after that day.

Mum has been living in Australia for fifteen years now. She is the happiest she has ever been. My love for her slowly but surely has been healing her pain.

I want nothing more than her healing before she leaves this earth.

She once wrote me a letter and asked for my forgiveness. I thanked her for the letter and told her that there was nothing for me to forgive. She did not do anything to harm me.

She could not harm me because I did not place myself under her power to be harmed. However, she was harming herself in inflicting pain upon me as well as herself.

All harm done to others is self-harming.

All abuse to others is in fact self-abuse.

I helped her to realise that and helped her to release herself from the bondage of self-blame. I told her that her abuse to me did not affect me in a negative way; on the contrary, I was very grateful to her.

She was a reflection, a mirror of who I do not want to become. Without her abuse, I would not have grown the way I did.

As a result of this experience, I have become a much better mother to my children. She loved me through her pain, but I chose to release my pain through loving her.

The only way you can heal pain is through love and acceptance of yourself.

One day, she told my daughter that I was the best mother any child could ever hope to have and that she was sorry for hurting me for many years.

My daughter Grace wiped off her tears and kissed her on her cheek. Then she said to her, ‘Don’t be sad, Grandma, it is not too late to start loving my mummy. Just Start Now.’

From love we come from, to love we must return. There is only one way to the Kingdom of Heaven, and that is, the path of Love…

Healing the Relationship with Your Mother – This story is an excerpt from a newly released self-healing book “Freedom to Love — Radical Healing From Disease to Health, Anger to Peace, Fear to Love” by Hong_Curley

What defines a hippy to you? A tree hugging weirdo or someone who cares for the planet and all its living things? I get really pissed off when people do not respect animals, people and this world. If that makes me a weirdo hippy than so be it. I would much rather be someone who gives a shit than some one who doesn’t. What defines an ignorant person to me? Someone who ignores all warnings and someone who thinks that they have it all figured out with no research to prove it.

Why am I writing about this today? Yesterday Massachusetts (the state where I live) had 7 confirmed touchdowns of tornadoes. This is shocking because it is rare to even have one tornado in this area never mind 7. What comes across your mind when you hear about Global Warming? Do you think, oh god not again? Or do you believe that it could potentiality be the end of you and your loved ones some day in the future? It boggles my mind when I hear that some people do not believe its real and that it is happening. Maybe it is their way of avoiding anything real or even anything that scares them or maybe they really don’t believe.

How is it that people can turn a blind eye to science? Do some people think that scientist are in there labs making this stuff up to scare and worry you? To me global warming is absolutely real. I take the words of the ones who know about it best, the ones who have done the research and the ones who took the time to find out. They are the ones I believe to be right, not the older generation who are saying, “everything’s fine” while sitting back in there reclining chairs, driving there gas guzzling cars.I will not be one of the people who takes this world for granted.

If you are unsure about how you feel about global warming I would suggest that you please take the time to learn about it. It could effect every single person that you know and love someday if more people don’t start changing the way they live. One of the most ignorant things a person could do in my opinion is to turn a blind eye to this, or wait until it is too late to do something about it.

Have you ever seen a global disaster movie? The scenes where shit is hitting the fan and everyone is hysterical? With the crazy “hippy” on the side of the sidewalk that is holding a sign that says its coming? If you didn’t believe that global warming was real and disaster strikes us one day would you feel stupid while running for your life and saw that hippy holding there sign that said stop global warming before it is too late?

Global warming has the power to crush this planet and everyone living on it. It could send tsunami waves to places that have never seen one before. It could create devastating tornadoes and earthquakes around the world. It could lead to terrifying things and ultimately, the end of this world and most importantly everything on it..

On the bright side there is a way to prevent these terrible things from happening and yes they are all things the typical hippy would do. Start recycling, stop wasting and start caring. If everyone could just change one thing that they do that is wasteful it could help to improve this global warming

dramatically. Use a reusable bottle and an under the sink water filter to replace all the wasted plastic drinking bottles. Even the smallest change like not using paper plates anymore could make it much safer living on the skin of this world.

I have to Get This Out Of My Head, It is ignorant to take life for granted and to turn a blind eye to the warnings. To think that you know everything without even finding out is something a lazy person would do. The people who take time to care and who takes the time to learn are the ones I respect and will listen too.

I was listening to the radio this morning and they mentioned the rape incident that happened in Palika recently (for those who don’t know, Palika is a large shopping place in central Delhi).

Such incidents are sadly quite common in Delhi and it is considered one of the most unsafe city for women in India. But, how do people, specifically parents of young daughters react to such incidents? Well, it generally means more curfews, more restrictions, no more short skirts, no going out at at night etc etc. Stifle freedom basically. And if you are a young woman and you see this happening to you very often, I can understand your frustration. I know its for no fault of yours.

Anyway, I think imposing curfews is just a very negative approach to the problem. You are just bending in front of the criminal elements in the society. You are letting these as**oles inhibit your freedom to live life as you want.

In any case, look at Mumbai and look at Delhi. In Mumbai, women dress much more freely, go out at night far more often and Mumbai is about ten times safer for women. I mean, really, you are a fool if you cant see how stifling freedoms actually aggravates the problem instead of solving it. Suffocating natural tendencies has a rebound effect. Rapes are supposed to be highest per capita in orthodox Islamic countries. Go figure.

So what then is the solution? Come on its so simple. Self Defense. Take some basic classes and just free yourself for life. Just give it back to that pig who tries to act smart with you. And you know all that shit about men being stronger is just that- shit. You only have to hit him at that sweet spot and, trust me, you can make him see all the constellations there are, right in the middle of the day.

Someone great once said ‘A man is only as strong as his greatest weakness’ . He was obviously good at puns. 😉 ……Take Care.

"I love him, I love him not.

"I love him, I love him not.

"Oh, Shit, I love him. Do I really love him?

"I don't know. It's just been three months, and his possessiveness has started bothering me. What to do with this Yasir named adhesive gel?"

Ezra asked Jasmine as she irritatingly plucked the last of the rose petal and tossed the twig in the overgrown wild bushes of the campus backyard.

"I think you better dump him and walk off. Three months! I swear I can't go beyond one month with the same guy." Jasmine raised her eyebrows taking a sip of her soft drink

"I know dear with so many attractive faces roaming around, it's not wise to stick with a single guy. But, there should be a reason for the breakup. And, all my breakup skills fail when it comes to Yasir." Ezra threaded her hair with her fingers leaning against the back of the backyard bench.

"He's a mind controller it seems. Why don't you ask him to meet you at a coffee shop and then turn up with a hot-looking guy, you know." Jasmine nibbled on her sandwich as she handed the soda can to Ezra.

"Foolish. Think something else," Ezra said before sipping the cold drink.

"Okay … How about this – You go with him but drool over other hot-looking dudes. I'm sure he'll dump you. I'm telling you – this trick works amazingly well with possessive jerks."

"This sounds awful."

"Fine, the last – you kiss his best friend making sure he watches you while you do the act."

"I can't kiss his best friend." Ezra painfully curved her lips.

"Why?"

"Because Chirag has chapped lips, and he also suffers from gingivitis. Yasir told me once. Yuck!"

"Oh! God save his girlfriend from getting bleeding gums." Jasmine took a deep breath as she grabbed the Coke can from Ezra.

Bring Bring

Ezra's cell phone vibrated in her purse.

"Talk of the devil and the devil's here. It's Chirag," Ezra muttered as she swiped the cell phone to attend Chirag's call.

"What? How? Where?" She fired a series of questions on the caller as she rose to her feet and ran towards the main college premises.

"Yeah, I'm coming where is he?" Keeping the cell phone closer to her ear, she hastily ran to the interior courtyard while Jasmine tailed her till the end of the crowded hallway.

"What happened? You're running like a shepherd boy who has lost all his sheep in the jungle." Jasmine called her from behind.

"Yasir not well. He met with an accident. He's sitting in the canteen."

"Canteen ?," Jasmine's eyes narrowed and her eyebrows grew V. "He should be in the hospital. What is he doing in the canteen? Eating samosas huh?"

"It's a minor one silly. I need to go see him."

"This is the time silly. Don't bother and he'll think you don't care and will finally leave you."

"This isn't the time Jass. Hope he's alright." Her eyes glazed as she strode towards the college canteen.

Every good punk needs a good pair of PUNK PANTS! Go down to your local opshop and buy some $2 denim jeans or steal them if its a shit charity run by Jesus freaks!

They don’t have to be perfect, they just have to fit, tighter is always better but you can always cut the legs on both sides and sew them to a tighter fit.

Now, the essential part of punk pants is BLING! No were not talking gold chains and rhinestones here, were talking patches, pins, badges, paint etc

Get some patches of your favorite bands, go to gigs or look online for some cheap screen printed band patches… your gonna want to cover 90% of the jean surface with band patches. Sew them on randomly, or at least make it appear random! If your good at stenciling make your own band or political stencils and spray paint it onto the fabric, white paint pens can be really effective also for writing your own slogans and band names! Use all the creative powers that the great earth spirit gave you to fuck these jeans up and personalize the shit out of them! Chuck on some suspenders and some NON LEATHER punk boots or sneakers and your set, now just go and hang out in an alley way drinking cider and singing punk anthems with your punk friends!

Alternatively you can buy some bondage pants from the various goth or punk stores online, and mod them up yourself – make them in your own style!

The Danny Trejo Interview
(* Pre-Interview Note- Before starting the interview I tell Danny that I try to ask some different questions than he may be used to, to which he replies "that's cool, but if I don't like the questions …" and he picks up a knife on the table we were sitting at and makes stabbing gestures towards me. It was definitely done in a humorous way, but let's be serious, this is Danny Trejo !!!! Even when he's being funny he's scary! )

TIS: After 25 years in the business, you're still a completely humble guy. What do you attribute this too?

DT: I think it's where I came from and the people I keep around me now. If you look at the people in Hollywood who are having trouble, they almost always have special interest people around them who are only making money from them, and don't give a shit what they're doing as long as they are still working. People like Paris, Lindsay & Tom Seizmore … but my friends, they don't give a fuck. They'll tell me "Fuck you, don't be an asshole". They're just straight up. I've got, hmm, I don't want to say real gangsters around me, but I've got people who've had lives, you know? My friends Craig, Mario & Max, they're all ex-convicts, so if I get bitchy (laughing), they'll say "Fuck you, were you that way in the joint?" So it was like having this life before I got into the movies which helped me understand that not everyone is supposed to get me a cappuccino, like they do on a movie set. People in this business honestly believe people are supposed to get them a cappuccino, and they often have no respect or manors. On a movie set things are geared to make you think you're really the shit and everything depends on you … it's all about you. The reality though, is that the movie business is a "we" business, not an "I" business. So I don't give a fuck what kind of star you are, you need to realize that that extra, or that boom mic operator is helping your movie.

That's what I find funny about Robert Rodriguez's movie. He calls me the lead in Machete and I'm like, what the fuck? We've got Robert DeNiro, the lead-iest man in the world, Jessica Alba, the lead-iest lady, Michelle Rodriguez and Lindsay. Lindsay was a sweetheart on the set, the problem is that she grew up in this business, so she really believes everyone is supposed to do the same thing when she is in the streets, as when she's on a movie sey and that's not how it is. Shit, the paparazzi love her because they know their going to get a finger and sell that picture for a thousand dollars. Michelle Rodriguez, same thing. So leading man my motherfuckin ass. I'll still run and get a cup of coffee for DeNiro if he asks me.

TIS: That wasn't you're first time working with DeNiro right?

DT: Right, I did Heat with him and he was totally cool then too. We treated each other with nothing but respect. You get what you put out.

TIS: You may be the most candid actor in Hollywood. The documentary Champion, which chronicles your life, goes in-depth about your rather colorful past (Danny interjects- "haha, San Quentin is colorful), covering your criminal history, drug addiction, and gang affiliation etc. It then goes on however to talk about your conviction to helping others through speaking engagements at penitentiaries and juvenile halls. Can you tell me about the importance of that in your life?

DT: Absolutely, you have to do that. Acting is just a job. I'm exactly the same as that lady bringing us coffee, and I have to remember that. My real job is helping others and you don't get paid for that. Again, if you look at the people in Hollywood who are heavy partiers, they're selfish, self-centered and egotistical. This business is made to destroy you. I've had trouble with stars before when doing karate movies and shit because all of the sudden they think they're bad asses and are like "hey motherfucker, I grew up on the streets" and I'm like yeah, but two Broadway shows a week doesn't count, bitch (laughter). That was pretty good huh?

TIS: You have me scared (laughter, sort of). There is a very powerful scene in that documentary where you visit your old prison cell in San Quentin. You're obviously very emotionally affected, but have trouble putting your experience into words. Now that you've had time to process it, can you tell me what your experience was like being back in that cell?

DT: I was a sad, angry, vicious person, and right now, I immediately start thinking about my kids, because anytime I remember that guy, I think about my kids. I never want my kids to see me like that. I never want my kids to see me willing to do whatever it takes to stay on top, like the decision to kill somebody being as easy as the flip of a coin, like just fucking kill him, you know? I never want to see that person. Like with arguments, the bottom line was always murder. Nobody gets killed when they're happy. It always starts with an argument, or a debt. It starts with a simple thing like a pack of cigarettes, but then the mind takes over and you start to think the guy is trying to make you look bad and all of the sudden you're willing to kill this guy over a simple argument, and that's why I won't argue anymore. I won't argue with anybody. People try to argue with me and my first thought is, am I willing to kill this person? Because that's the bottom line. So when people come at me they can't win, they think they can, but they can't. I'll just walk away.

The old me, that person, he's gone, and now I've got these three beautiful kids who are depending on me, though they're actually not kids anymore. My daughter Danielle is 20, and she's an actress. My son Gilbert is 22 and he's producing a movie called Skinny Dip, with Franky Latina. He's 22 and producing this fucking movie! I was 22 and sitting in San Quentin. So he's producing a movie and it's funny because he said hey dad, I got you a role, but you may have to audition, and I was like "you little shit". Then there's my big boy, Danny Boy, and he's into electronics and used to do the guidance systems for missiles, but now works for me. And so life couldn't be better. I couldn't fuck it up with an argument, you know?

TIS: So I hear you have a punk rocker in your family, and you're a self professed "punk rock dad"? Can you tell me a little about that?

DT: Haha, yeah. My son Gilbert used to have a band called The Dead Reagan Tour, which he and some friends started and were influenced by bands like Suicidal Tendencies.

TIS: Very cool.

DT: Yeah, so one day I drove onto the set of a movie I was working on and was bumping one of Gilbert's songs. Unbeknownst to me, the director and producer were really into punk, so they came over to my car and asked if I was listening to Suicidal Tendencies and I told them no, that it was my sons band. The name of the song he wrote was "No More Meds", which is about all the kids at school that the parents are putting on medication because they don't want to deal with them. So we were doing a movie with Tom Seizmore's daughter, and there was a scene where she was trying to escape from a hospital because someone was trying to kill her, and she was all medicated up, so they asked if they could use the song because it was a perfect fit, and it worked out great! Shit, I can't remember the name of the movie though.

But then a bunch of the guys in the band were getting loaded and my son wasn't into it so they broke up. It's funny because I was literally like the roadie. I used to rent vans for the guys to get to shows and finally said fuck it, I'll buy a bus. So I went and bought a Greyhound bus, problem was though, when I bought it, I put myself as the driver and that's how it showed up on the insurance, so all of the sudden I was their driver / roadie. My son used to joke that his band had the only roadie that people would ask for autographs. We had such a blast though. I loved watching my son on stage. He's really good. He's actually writing a song right now. That fucker's really smart. My Daughter is the same way. She's training right now with a girl named Tanya Fairfoot, who's a great little actress, and Danielle is just really doing her thing. She's awesome.

TIS: Very nice. So while we're on the topic of music, who are you listening to these days?

DT: I like R&B and oldies. I actually did a thing with Kid Frost who is a rapper, and I've done a lot with Baby Bash. I've got a singer and she's going into the studio to do a song with Scoop DeVille, who is Kid Frost's son. Her name is Alicia and she is going to be awesome. I also have a magazine coming out called My Mag , and I'm also opening up a restaurant called Trejo's in Huntington Beach, which will have awesome Mexican food. I also have a film coming out soon called Vengeance.

TIS: I saw something about that online. Who else is in it with you?

DT: Jason Mewes, Baby Bash, Techn9ne, Diamond Dallas Page, Rashad Evans, Houston Alexander and 50 Cent. Fucking everybody is in it.

TIS: Wow, quite the lineup. Can you tell me how you relax in your free time?

DT: I love old, vintage cars. I've got a 1936 Dodge Touring Sedan right now and there's only five of them registered in the world, and I absolutely love working on it. It's gorgeous. Big G's Automotive over in Inglewood is working on it for me right now. In fact, I forgot I need to ask them a question so I'm going to call them real quick.

TIS: Yeah, do your thing.

DT: (As he's calling he continues on …) I'm building a Machete bike which is fucking gorgeous man. I wish I could show you pictures of it. (He then connect's with Big G's Automotive … and we continue after he's done). Yeah so they've got the Dodge up on blocks right now. It's going to be like a Limo. Very shiny black, and it's going to be the Machete car. It's going to have rhinestone Machete's in the trunk and shit.

TIS: Nice, very bad ass.

DT: Yeah.

TIS: You hold the honor of having the most recognizable tattoo in the world, as voted by International Tattoo Magazine. Can you tell me about the origin of your chest piece and what criteria ITM used to deem it the most recognizable tattoo in the world?

DT: Ok, so I have a friend Harry "Super Jew" Ross. We've been a great friends since around fourteen years old. We used to rob the same places down in San Fernando Valley. We both ended up in San Quentin on different charges and started it there. He did the outline, but shortly after I got kicked out. It was like a scene from West Side Story, because there I was, leaving on the bus in chains, and Harry is standing outside yelling "don't let anybody touch it, I'll be there!" and I'm yelling back "Ok, I won't". I went over to Folsom and about three or four months later, he showed up and we did a little more. It was his first big piece. About three months or so after that, there was a big riot in Folsom and they shipped me over to Soledad. Harry was almost finished with it and we had another West Side Story moment as I was leaving, "let me finish it Danny", "ok, I will". And so he ended up in Soledad and we finished it up there. From there he went back and finished his time in Folsom.

TIS: That's an amazing story. And how did ITM decide it was the most recognizable tattoo in the world?

DT: Basically because of all the movies I've been in. That reminds me, do you remember the tattoo that George Clooney had in From Dusk Til Dawn ?

TIS: Yeah, the one going down his neck?

DT: Yeah, well that was obviously fake, so I'd give him shit about it on the set and say, go ahead George, time to put it on "(laughter).

TIS: Nice, sticking it to him. Did you really rob a liquor store with a hand grenade?

DT: Hahaha, where did you get that?

TIS: You said it on your Champion documentary, unless I misheard you. * Note- I went back and re-watched the segment. Danny did say he robbed a liquor store with a hand grenade but in his defense, he was such a gangster, it has to be tough to keep all the thievin straight.

DT: We had different weapons. We definitely robbed them with semi-automatics and other various weapons, but I'm not sure about hand grenades. I know I was caught with a hand grenade before. But shit, I don't even remember. Who knows?

TIS: Any word on the Machete sequels, Machete Kills & Machete Kills again?

DT: Robert (Rodriguez) definitely wants to do them. The feedback, along with how well the movie has done vs. what it cost to make, makes it a given, you know? So it's just a matter of when we're going to do it, not if we're going to do it.

TIS: Cool, so we can look forward to it in the future.

DT: Yes. Robert said if it makes five dollars he'd do the sequel, and It's made a lot more than five dollars. I keep texting him "it's made a lot more than $ 5". We actually just finished doing the new Spy Kids movie.

TIS: Nice, when's that coming out?

DT: Probably around Christmas time. I also have a movie called Blacktino coming out, and one called Ranchero. I have Harold & Kumar's Christmas, the third installment in that series coming out too.

TIS: Wow, you are definitely a busy man. How many movies have you done this year?

DT: Oh man, I don't know. Maybe around 17.

TIS: Wow. So there is an amazing kill scene in Machete where you take 3 heads off at once? Did you have any input on that or other kill scenes?

DT: That particular scene was all Robert.

TIS: Did you have any input on any of the other scenes or was it all Robert?

DT: Basically, Robert and I will just talk. If you come up with an idea, and Robert likes it, he'll take it and when he's done, there's no way you're not going to be impressed. Robert is just so brilliant. He is easily one of the smartest guys I know. I've done nine movies with him and I just love the way he shoots. He knows what he wants, so he'll do it and get it. With other directors, they only have an idea of ​​what they want, and then they've got to see it. So they'll do eight, nine, ten takes before they see it. But with Rodriguez, he comes from an editing background, so it doesn't take that long.

He has a book called Rebel Without A Crew and I see every director I've work with, who's read it, utilizing time. While we're shooting one scene, the other scene is already being set up. So as an actor, I don't have a lot of fucking time in the trailer doing nothing, you know? It's great because you keep the energy and momentum up, whereas with a lot of directors, you shoot and then you go back to the trailer and sit around on the phone or playing solitaire or whatever.

TIS: It's cool to hear that after seeing his movies. It definitely explains a lot. So in closing, I was wondering if you could tell me about your understanding of God and the significance of that in your life?

DT: Ok, listen … There is no significance of God in my life, God is my life. I would not be, without God. I am supposed to be dead. In 1968 I was in the hole going to the gas chamber, but there was a divine intervention. And in knowing that, for me to get upset, or be mad, or angry, is like slapping God in the face. So here I am. I didn't make a deal with God, because you can't make a deal with God. He put me here to talk to kids and to talk to drunks and help addicts. He gave me this "job" which makes it a lot easier to get through to people. Let's say you and I go on a speaking engagement, to a bunch of rowdy kids. When you go out there, the first thing you need to do is get their attention, which is basically impossible, and then you need to keep their attention which is also impossible because they have the attention span of a gnat. The most important thing to them is what is happening on Friday night or what girl their going to try and grab some tittie from, because that's just their whole world. So then you have to show them you're cool, which is impossible because our cool (sober people in recovery), is not their cool. The blessing that God has given me is that when I walk on campus, I've already got their attention.

TIS: That would be true.

DT: Yeah, you know what I mean? Maybe someone of George Clooney's stature would too, but they don't do this, they'd rather be saving motherfuckers in Somalia or Afghanistan or adopting babies from wherever the fuck. But right here, in the United States our kids are dying. They're shooting each other and killing each other, but hey, let's go save the kids in Somalia or some fucking place? This is the blessing that I've got It's the blessing that he's given me. It's inspiring to hear teachers and principals tell me that I've done in forty five minutes, what they've been trying to do an entire semester. When people clap for me I say, don't clap for me, clap for what God has done.

TIS: That's so admirable. Being in recovery myself, it means a lot to hear that!

DT: Yeah man. Thank you!

TIS: So anything in closing?

DT: Yeah, I'm going to be in Salt Lake City at The Bay doing "The Machete Massacre" at their Haunted House. It's the largest Haunted House in the country. I'm really excited about it! I'll be there Friday Oct 29th – Sun Oct 31st. And that's it. I've already mentioned everything else I have going on.

TIS: Right on Danny, thanks so much.

DT: Thank you man, this was cool!

Lot of things can go wrong, when you go for a long trip across the ocean, in Hong Kong typically people buy motor yachts and sail them from Hong Kong to Philippines which is about 600 Nautical Miles. Being in this business for 21 years. I have seen a lot of things going wrong in this procedure, including people I know that lost their lives. So here are some tips, I really only wish that it could help someone and possibly could save someone’s life.

Here are some tips or things that you should understand before you think about taking a long trip that could be danger to your life.

1) Know what happens when shit hits the fan

If you get stuck for any reason, and going adrift, you have called the coast guards, and you are lucky they picked up your call and understood your accent. You think helicopter is gonna show up and a Chuck Norris type of guy is going to come and save you in few minutes? If you think so, you been watching too much Hollywood. Smack yourself and realize any sensible help will arrive in 24 hours after you have made successful contact. There are 100s of human or machine errors that can happen. In your life when have you ever had a smooth day when everything worked like it is supposed to? So why you think you are going to be a priority for the rescue team or whoever is trying to save you. Even if you are their priority, what makes you think they are perfectly capable of carrying it out or not facing any problems of their own at the time? So again, the point is, prepare for the worst case scenario. And Let me tell you what is going to happen when shit hits the fan. When you are in the open seas and cross that no point of return, something is going to happen to your engine. It could be anything, from injector problem to clogged system, overheating and shutdown.

Now you are going to need a guy who really knows how to fix things, but the open seas are not like your marina club, getting into the engine room to take things apart and repair or replace is almost an impossible task. And Many times even a repair that you know how to do, cannot be done in open seas.

You will get all messed up, especially when you encounter a problem that cannot be repaired on the spot, and you can’t really keep going. Your only lifeline during that time is going to be a satellite phone that could somehow rescue you. But guess what! Most likely you will have to kiss your boat good bye. Because if any coast guard or navy is going to attempt to rescue you. They are there to rescue people, not your property. They are not going to tug your boat along. But lets say you are not in a life threatening situation but just stuck there. Still you will need someone to come and rescue you, And you will still need the coast guards. In this case, they will not dispatch their emergency vessels, But they will contact a ongoing container ship or any other commercial vessel that is near your location and arrange for that vessel to pick you up. Even if the big vessel decides to tow your boat, towing a boat in open waters will just break the boat apart or sink it. At one point you will have to let it go and let it drift away.

If you want to have any chance of getting the boat back, you will need a satellite tracker on the boat, there are cheap ones that can run on batteries for up to six weeks. Which should be enough time for you to have a tug or a salvage boat to come and take it to port.

But guess how much they charge. A salvage boat that will travel to open waters to locate and bring your boat back will cost over 12,000 USD a day. And they are not going to be in a hurry I can tell you that.

2) Have the Right Emergency Equipment

It goes without saying that you need right and updated navigation equipment and AIS (Automatic identification system). But you also need the best emergency equipment, because now your life depends on what equipment you have on board. So If you are still near civilization lets say 10 miles, you could use your Marine VHF and get help. That will be your lucky day. But if you are 300 miles away from port, in open sea where nearest port is another 300 miles. You better have a high quality Satellite phone with you. There are handheld ones, but you will wish had a better Satphone in place with an antenna on top of your boat in situation like this. Handheld GPS is also very important, because remember you are going to have to abandon ship. Weather that is on a rescue boat or on a liferaft, depends on your lucky stars. So you are still gonna need your handheld satellite phone. I know I sound pessimistic, but if you been in business for as long as I have and know people who have never been found then you will know what I mean. Also get an EPIRB system and register it. It makes emergency calls by itself. But don’t just depend on one system. Remember when the weather is bad, and things are going down, nobody else is going to come and save you. A good liferaft that is placed in a right position and easy to deploy is going to be your life line.

3) Don’t think you know everything!

Only if I could get a dollar every time I heard stuff like, “we owned boats, we know everything about them”. “We have done tougher boat trips than this”. “My captain is a pro, he will handle it”. Many of these guys have disappeared into the abyss. You gotta remind yourself that no matter how big your boat is, you are still a speck of dust in the vast ocean and when mother nature gets angry, it takes no time for a situation to become from a beautiful spectacle to plain deadly. So the point is. Listen to professionals, Don’t just depend on your captain, because a captain is not going to tell you his weakness. He needs his pay day. Listen to an experienced surveyor, a company who has done the journey plenty of times, or a experienced broker who points you to a right direction. Don’t depend on just one party, get multiple suggestions from experienced people.

4) Don’t do it if you got a tight budget

Yes, buying boats is a costly business, by the time a customer buys a boat, plans his cross country trip to take it back to his country, he is exhausted with paying bills. If you are in a foreign land, especially as expensive as Hong Kong, you are going to get annoyed every time you see a bill. Everything costs big money here. From few extra days in moorings, water supply, to spare parts, fuel, food and especially labor. It is mentally exhausting process if the owner of the boat is involved in day to day operation. In a middle of it all, you will realize that if you had just shipped the boat, the cost wouldn’t be too different, and when you think that, you will start to cut down cost on something that is important, like a quality life raft, Epirb System, GPS perhaps, or some work that is recommended by your surveyor. Again, nothing is cheap when it comes to taking a long boat trip.

5) Hire a professional to check the weather and don’t make close calls

It is easy to Google weather trends and get general idea. But please get your surveyor (who had surveyed your boat) to double check things, you can contact a government department and also ask for help to understand the weather trends. Modern weather systems can check pretty accurately the conditions for 72 hours, But if your journey is of 2 days in open waters, and there is even a slight chance of rough weather after 5 days. Know that this is a close call, and likely this rough weather patch is going to be your killer. So wait until there is a good clear weather forecast. And of course have a weather receiver in place that can add on to the current navigation system of the boat. It is must to have a navigation system ofcourse in the boat, which includes a decent sized display screen with a chart plotter, a radar, a GPS. To add a weather receiver to that system could cost less than a 100 USD, with a small subscription fee you can receive weather updates throughout your journey.

6) Avoid most common problems

Last but not least. Note that the most common problem for engine break down is clogged systems. It could be dirty fuel. But more than that. It is just when people buy old boats. They fail to understand that after many years, there is sludge made by diesel that is collected at the bottom of the tank. When the boat is cruising in domestic waters for few hours every week, it is not a problem. But when you take the boat in deep sea and its beaten by the waves, eventually after hours of rough ride, the dirt in the fuel tank is going to get into the pipes and start to clog it. So, if you have bought a used boat and taking it across the ocean then make sure the tanks are cleaned out. It is not cheap to do it and the labour can be intensive. But it is necessary. Other problem is also dirty fuel. Some countries or some fuel companies can sell you dirty fuel for cheaper prices. There are some places in Asia that water is mixed with diesel, Many places the diesel is just outright dirty. This needs to be very carefully checked.

Sometimes the drums that you store the diesel. Also are dirty, they are reused industrial drums that need to be cleaned and dried carefully before fuel can be stored inside.

I hope these tips can be helpful for those who are planning a boating adventure.

Happy boating

Ask people in the Bay Area what the Hyphy Movement is all about and you will get many different meanings and perspectives. So who can truly explain what it’s all about?

In search of such a person, we heard about one emerging Hyphy artist getting ready to release a new album with guest appearances from Too Short, San Quinn, J Diggs, among others. This artist certainly tells it like it is, so we gave him a chance to explain the Hyphy movement.

Driving around the Bay Area in a custom made limousine with the words “Hyphy Train” painted across the rear window, this emerging artist calls himself Greenie. Whether he means to or not, his deep, raspy voice carries a Hyphy tone that encapsulates this Bay Area movement.

Greenie recently took a break from the studio to talk about the Hyphy movement & what rap music is missing:

Interview:

Bay Area Hyphy Movement (BAHM): From what we understand, Hyphy can be crazy dance moves or just smashing someone in the face. How would you define Hyphy?

Greenie: Hyphy as I understand it literally means hyper and fly, but really its how all da homies from the Bay get down when we listen to our Bay style music.

BAHM: Some might say the Hyphy Movement is just a fad? Can it last?

Greenie: Thats like asking is hiphop or rap a fad, hell no it aint a fad, its a lifestle/music. I think it will evolve and take different forms, but now when we refer to hyphy, we are talking bout Bay style, Bay area rap.

BAHM: What does the Hyphy movement mean to the Bay Area?

Greenie: Well, its just like I said rap/hip-hop started in Queens. It evolved took different forms. Today, the South would refer to there style of rap as crunk, the Bay would refer to its Style as hyphy. But not everyone who is from the Bay raps with a hyphy style. I for one only have three songs on my album that I would classify as “hyphy” the rest are just normal rap. E-40’s last album every song was hyphy, kick drum slumping hard, beats per minute slightly sped up, and e-40 spittin somethin vicious, THATS HYPHY at its core, and everybody in the Bay is down with it so its important for the Bay in that it brings us all together.

BAHM: So tell us about the new album. What should fans expect, who are some of the guest appearances?

Greenie: First off I’d like to say that I am a huge fan of rap first before ever being an artist. The game is missing a classic element in that people are rapping whole songs and aren’t saying shit. It’s look what I got, whereas before you could pickup a dope record and actually learn a lot of street shit. In this album you could pick it up and learn a lot of shit about Northern California and this sick ass place we call the Bay Area. I brought several of my favorite artists from the Bay Area and LA together to make this dope album. Look for Too $hort San Quinn, J diggs, and Roscoe of the Dogg Pound, to name a few, and classic producers like One Drop Scott who has worked with Mac Dre, and Gennessee, who has a ridiculous roster.

BAHM: I heard several tracks from your latest album and they are straight Slumper. What is your favorite track, what is the album called & when is it getting released?

Greenie: My much anticipated album is due out this month however, I keep pushing it back since I just received word that Snoop Dogg is only a phone call away. The album will be named The Legend Of Chester Copperpot. My favorite track on the album would have to be “Who Drop,” no one has heard it yet cause I wont let anyone listen to it. IT IS ONE OF THE BEST RAP SONGS EVER MADE!

BAHM: What can we expect in the future of Hyphy music?

Greenie: Hopefully, you will see a unified Bay where we aint at war with each other, right now shit is outta control with the violence in the rich and in the O. If we could get unified, hyphy music could really be a driving force behind rap music in general.

BAHM: What other artists should we be looking for outta Northern Cali?

Greenie: Obviously you got the San Quinn’s, E-40’s, keek da sneek that make our music dope. Thizz ent has a roster of sick individuals though, Bavgate, and our famous new Indian dude Haji Springer are bout to take over. Look for dem to do some big thangs in the upcoming future months.

BAHM: There have been rough times for you working on your latest album. Did you ever think about quitting the rap thing altogether? What kept you going?

Greenie: It’s tough in the rap game since everybody and there mother is tryin to rap. There are times still where I’m like shit I aint making that money off this thing like I thought I would, but than another thing I’ve really come to realize is that I really enjoy rapping, I love it, that shit is fucken fun when you lay down something dope. Selling records these days is all bout marketing. I feel like I’ve surrounded myself with the right people, I’ve got my features up, and this is the best album I’ve ever done so regardless of the response I’m still happy.

BAHM: Do you like the direction that hip hop music is going, or would you like to see something different?

Greenie: I do not understand how some of this shit makes it to TV and the radio but I’m not gon hate on them for there success. Obviously they were doing something right. Hip hop will never be the same as it was since it’s birth in the early eighties late seventies. Early on we were learning from each others as emcees, what sounded hot and street cred, and what not to say. Now that most shit from the street has been taught by previous emcees it’s hard for an artist to express new ideas that haven’t really been touched by previous rappers. So a lot of what you here is repetitive like look at the diamonds I’ve got, the cars, the bytches, the dope, my street life. As long as we keep rappin bout the same shit we’re kinda stuck, so what I’ve tried to do is create shit that hasn’t really been touched and try to be original as much as possible. I’ve also got OG’S from the rap game on the album so I can bring that original flavor of hip hop to the present. Too Short, and the Reyes brothers from Cypress Hill, are some of the artists you’ll find on my record and they are some of my favorite artists of all time as well.