A Living Introduction

This blog has been on and off since 2008. I’ve started it, stopped it, restarted it. At this point, even I roll my eyes when I say, “I’m bringing it back.”

But something’s different now.

Why Here, Why Now

I’ve been rethinking how I share ideas. Social media felt like the right place for a while. Facebook, Twitter, even Google+. Each promised connection. Each delivered a distraction.

Over time, my posts got shorter, faster, thinner. They vanished in hours. That didn’t sit right.

Here I can slow down. I can write in a way that holds up past the scroll.

About Me

I live in Metro Phoenix. Before that Atlanta. Before that Detroit, where I grew up.

I work in product and promotional design. Finance, defense, pharma, aviation. It wasn’t planned. After a layoff in the late 90s, I retrained in network security because it paid well. It was awful.

The one bright spot was a section on web design. That grabbed me. I skipped the security path, taught myself design, freelanced, and eventually built a career I still love.

What I’m Building

Design is part of the story, but not the whole story. I’ve always wanted to do work that matters for Black people.

That’s why I started Urban Folk.

It’s not just a business. It’s a tool to shift how we spend, who we support, and how we build power. Before integration, we had our own ecosystems. Barbershops. Banks. Bus lines. That history isn’t nostalgia. It’s proof.

Urban Folk is about reclaiming that mindset. From consumer to creator. From invisible to owner.