Arrogance

Renaissance Renovation-Anacostia

Before I left to do the taping for @HGTV Design Star, I sat down with an architect and the owner of Equilibrium Real Estate Fund. As the newly contracted designer for their renovations, I was presenting possible layouts for a newly purchased property in historic Anacostia, Washington, DC. An area that has had a reputation as “the hood” for so long, but is yet so rich in history. I took an interest in this project because of the potential that lies in this once forgotten region of southeast Washington, DC

The house was in terrible disrepair and had one of the funkiest layouts I have seen to date. having in 2 small bedrooms but 2 unusually large bathrooms

(a lot of waisted space) and the kitchen being split in two rooms, coupled with that fact that the house had no 90 degree angles and everything was on a slant, made this project a real challenge. After coming up with a layout that allowed for 3 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, a relocated kitchen and a new sunroom, I had to leave for New York for my television debut.

When I returned I came back to a completely gutted house. Framing was just finished and drywall had begun.

After a some 8 weeks of work, We managed to transform this awkward property into a home.

The new layout and higher end finishes has made this one of the highest appraised

properties in the area.

Not only was the house being transformed but the neighborhood as well. We had many occurrences of neighbors stopping by to compliment us in the job we were doing.

Within one square block, there were new modern schools,

government buildings, coffee shops, salons and restaurant popping up.

The once blighted neighborhood was returning to it’s former glory.

As the principle designer I make the decisions on final floor plan,

exterior selections, all finish materials (tile, flooring, lights, fixtures) and color. I decided to detour

from my usual modern style and bring in a transitional feel with some traditional touches.

On the exterior, I reconstructed the porch with traditional wood columns and railings and added shutters to

add interest to the exterior. On the interior, I brought in bamboo hardwood floors, porcelain tile, seamless glass shower doors, granite countertops,

stainless steel appliances and many other modern conveniences.

Seamless glass shower porcelain tile floor custom closet half bath

bamboo floors contemporary ceiling fan original stair railings

New Kitchen with SS appliances, slide-in cooktop and granite countertops

But one of the biggest additions to the property was a beautiful 1 bedroom apartment downstairs as well as 2 large decks and a rooftop deck. One of the biggest attraction of living in SE is the view of downtown.

Overall there is over 500 sq. ft of outdoor living space.

Back of the house with new porches

view from the rooftop deck

I am proud to be involved in projects that are able to change the face of communities across the nation’s capital. My goal is to reveal the possibilities that lay in our once neglected neighborhoods. Historic Anacostia is very much alive and growing, and I am grateful to be a part of it.

2243 Shannon Place SE, Washington, DC

The Dark Haikus

Alone in the dark
Void of fear but void of hope
The light escapes me

Reaching the bottom
Optimism still so far
I bury myself

eight times in one day
different ways it will happen
it all ends the same

The death sentence of fear

I am stuck here
Afraid to move forward
Risking that I could fall back
Terrified to stay still
Growing roots in unfertile soil
Permanently cementing my faith of a premature death
An unhealthy existence
One of pure happenstance and void of purpose
Life giving potential wasted
Robbing the earth of nutrients
Producing no fruit
Unable to uproot and relocate
Without dying in the possess
The leaves all almost gone
Is this my death
Or is it just the seasons
This year I hope it’s my death
Because I cant take another wasted year
Scorched in the summer
Bitterly beaten in the winter
Embarrassed in the spring
And depressing in the fall
All because I got stuck here
Paralyzed by fear

You can't possibly love me

You Cant possibly love me
Why would you do that to yourself
Don’t you see that I am not deserving
Incapable and unwilling to return the sentiment
Honest about my inability to commit
Incapability to focus
Inhibitions to decide
Decide on what I want need or deserve
Unclear about everything except that I am not who you should love
Just because I am a good person doesn’t mean I am good for you
Don’t you see?
I can’t go thru this again
Hurting you is like hurting myself
With the break of every heart by my hands, I suffer ten times fold
And I am not sure that I am strong enough to break your heart
But I fear the possibility is too great
I can’t take that chance
Don’t love me, because I am still serving my sentence for my past actions
And I don’t want to add on my hard time
My hearts a prison but you still want in
Don’t you see that you are trying to break into jail
I am just trying to protect you and protect me
This is not where you want to be
I am not what you see
The danger lies deeper but you are too blinded to see
I am throwing away the key and protecting this fort from all intruders
Because I know something that you don’t
You should not fall in love with me

Cry with me?

Who is going to cry with me? Who is going to cry with me for the black child who have been given no hope. Thirsty for knowledge and guidance, but only receiving false prophets and media corruption. Desensitized to the importance of life and unaware of the joy of living. Forced fed hate and violence, materialism and vanity, Complacency and selfishness, self hated and destructive images.

Who is going to cry with me for my black women? The only demographic to be loved by no one. Look down upon because they are black, disregarded because they are women and disrespected because they are objectified. And even the ones they love so much, are the ones that disrespect them and put them down the most; The black man. All this negative imagery causes them to even hate themselves, so now they can’t even love each other. Strong enough to endure so much negativity and raise a family on her own, she is still not able to recognize her worth and take her place as the mother of this earth.

Who is going to cry for the black man… No one, until he learns how to cry for himself, his women and his children. Until he realized that the strength of his tear can wash away the plight of all others. So I am going to start crying to begin the healing. Who is going to cry with me?

The life I wont live

The story of my life is continuing to unfold. I thought the final draft would have been clear. I thought it would tell of great works and great character, good deeds and respectable behavior. But the more I travel down this road of life; I realize that all the good works are going to be tainted by the truth. For good character never outshines good scandal. I live my life sometimes on impulse. And those times are the ones that will prove to be the source of my demise. A man can only hold so many skeletons in his closet before the door flies open.In my younger years I made sure to keep my closet open. No shame in my game. But now that I am suppose to be an adult and responsible, and upstanding, certain things can not be common place anymore. Whether I approve or not, I have an image to up hold.

But the fact remains that I am still young. I am adventurous and spontaneous. I like pushing the envelope and trying new things. Maybe my legacy will be of one, who despite his outlandish and nontraditional ways, still accomplished great deeds and stayed true to himself. Maybe I will serve as an inspiration for other free minded individuals to live their life as they see fit. But the problem is that my life isn’t just about me. It’s about everyone around me who are affected by my actions. The people who love me, support me, rely on me, trust me, and look up to me. I can’t bear to hurt or disappoint them. So I stay in a corner, only letting pieces of my spirit show until it gets unbearable to witness and then I retreat and become refined.

Sometimes I want to fly to a foreign place where there is no one I know nor will ever see again, just to see if I have the courage to just let loose. If I will be able to be me, and discover who the real me is, without the pressure of society choreographing my actions. And then here lies the dilemma. Who am I without the people who love me and support me? Is it possible to be me without them? Would it be genuine or a live screenplay of the many images that pass through my restless mind. Who knows; but knowing me, I will attempt to find out. If it was just my life as I know it, I would risk it, but the lives of the ones I love are keeping me here. Still dreaming about being there, and being him. If only for a short time, if only for a guarantee of no consequences.

If only I could live in my dream, and wake up to be satisfied. But my dreams leave me more parched than before. My lust for a responsibility free life grows and I want to dream more so that I can reach to the point that I cant denying my desires. When my head is so consumed that the consequences become unreadable small print between the fabrics of charred paper. And only until all is said and done am I going to lay back and say “what the f*&% did I just do?” Realize how stupid it was, regret it, but still feel free that at least I found the courage to experience it. God, I love life, I just wish I would spend some time living it.