The Man Upstairs

T-Bone Drops Knowledge

So, for those of you who might' ve read the Rico interview. You know that T-Bone called him during our interview. This naturally caught my attention. T-Bone would be an interesting interview. Let's face it, many of us lost interest with the first five who were eliminated. I saw a golden opportunity to interview one of the first to go home. So I asked Rico to hook me up. And without hesitating he gave me the seven digits and told me it's a done deal. ( Don't you love men who do what they say they will?) I called T-Bone several times...no answer, no return call. I began feeling a little bill collectorish ( I know that is not a word...sue me.) Honestly considering he didn't owe me money ( like my f@#$ing brother does). I decided to give it a rest. Maybe he has moved on or he changed his mind about granting the 'Flavor of Love' Blogspot an interview.

I was very mistaken. T-Bone just has a busy fulfilling life. When he was stuck in rush hour traffic, he decided to give Quanda a call and get his phone interview on.

Hello.
Hello may I speak with Quanda?

This is she.
Hello this is T-Bone.

Oh hi T-Bone, I am glad you called. I've been trying to catch up with you.
I know. I've been real busy. I am sitting here in traffic moving every 2 minutes. So I thought we could get this interview cracking.

T-Bone I am not ready. Can we schedule it for another time? I don't even have my interview notebook in front of me. Lord knows where a pen is!
Let's do this Quanda. I got a lot going on and this is the perfect time for me.

Man alright....let me find my notebook and pen. Give me a few moments. *talks to my little ones... Thing 1 and Thing 2 (Think Dr. Seuss!) get on that bed and watch ' Monster House'. Okay, T-Bone....I am ready. Let's get this started. Where were you born and raised?
Brooklyn, New York the B.K., the hood I've seen a lot of things growing up. I've seen some wild things, gun play, people strung out, the whole nine yards.

You've seen a lot. I want to thank you for making me one of your top friends on your myspace page. I noticed the vacation picture you have up. You like to travel?
Yes, I love to travel. I've been to many different places. I've been to the U.K., Iceland, Scotland and Japan. I was in the service.

Oh really, what branch did you serve?
Air Force, I want to give a shout out to all my Air Force buddies. And you know... I want to thank all my brothers and sisters who are serving in the armed forces. You know they are out there putting their lives on the line serving our country. Whatever, your political beliefs these men and women are sacrificing for us and losing their lives. They don't know who the enemy is, it could be an innocent looking kid strapped with a bomb or just about anybody.

Yeah, I hear you. I tell my husband not to get close to any kids and don't be trying to give them candy.
Wow your husband is over there now?

Yep, his third time over there. And I am retired Navy.
I feel for you and your family. I really do. I pray it's God's will to bring him home safely. And I thank you for your sacrifice.
( He doesn't know this....but I start to cry.)

I appreciate that T-Bone. I really do. So tell me about the love you've been receiving since your appearance on the ' I Love New York' show.
Man, it's been great. Actually almost unbelievable, people are coming up to me and telling me they were sorry she didn't keep me around longer. I didn't know it but there are T-Bone fans out there. This wonderful lady Angela from Mississippi created the Official T-Bone myspace fan page. I have over a 1,ooo friends and I am grateful for her and all of my fans' love and support. I also have an official personal myspace page. Chrystal from Dallas helps me with that page. I really want to thank both of them for all they've done.

T-Bone....you have over a thousand friends?
Yes.

You have a vacation picture up with some type of statue...right?
No.

T-Bone, I am a top friend on a fake T-Bone myspace page.
There's a fake T-Bone myspace page up?

Yes, and I've been had.... bamboozled.
That's crazy. We both laugh.

Well we all know you were one of the first to go. What are your thoughts on not having the opportunity to stay longer?
She didn't have an opportunity to get to know me. So she pass up on getting to know a good guy. I understand and wish her the best.

I was actually sorry to see you go. You have such a positive energy and seemed like a nice and genuine guy. How long where you there?
Quanda, you know there's a contract. So I don't want to say too much. I'll say more than a day.

I understand. ( But that contract isn't stopping most of them.)
I will tell you that I had a chance to meet a lot of good cats. I got along with Rico and Tango. And I call Mr. Boston my twin brother. Did you see that rap he did on VH-1 V-spot?

Yes.
Well I was the one who egged him on to do his version of gangsta rap.
( You get a $500 fine for that! Make the check payable to.......)

You egged him on! I am shocked and shaking my head. We both laugh.
The guys pretty much all got along. Of course as the elimination approached cats started to get uneasy. And as the show progresses, it's going to get even worst.

How do you feel about the haters?
Treat them with flowers and love. Some people feel better shooting arrows at others. I am not one of those people. I practice T-Boneism. I keep it positive and enjoy life. I don't have time for any negative crap. You want to know my philosophy on women, life and love.

Actually I do. I am all ears.
Imaging a balancing scale, on one side you have long term/ great personality on the other side you have short/ good looking. I believe that physical attraction is a strong force initially. And for many that is of course what sparks their interest. Good looks are always a plus but as time passes beauty often fades. So, you have this beautiful companion, a trophy wife...years later she isn't looking so hot. What do you have? Do you have common interests, is she a good person, do you truly love her? If the answer is no, you messed up because you only saw the physical and didn't look deeper. You didn't think long term. Now on the other hand, you take a guy like me. I am not the most handsome nor am I the ugliest. So, the ladies have never been chasing me for my looks. So I couldn't depend on my looks. I had to work on my personality and character. So if I approach a lady she might not initially be attracted to me. However, if she gives me a chance she can get a glimpse of my personality which might interest her and lead to a date. The more she gets to know me, there's a chance that she likes spending time with me and her attraction grows. And her attraction is based upon my personality which is here to stay and not vanishing like the physical.

Preach, brother preach....I understand totally. I was not the most attractive growing up. So I was a book worm and geek. I've never been the prettiest, so I've relied on my personality. ( And people my personality isn't all that great either!)
Exactly, you do understand. You know another thing I've noticed. There are plenty of beautiful, successful, intelligent women who miss out on having a companion. They have the careers, houses, cars all this material stuff. Yet, they have no one to share it with. I believe it's because they have expectations of finding the perfect guy instead of the right mate for themselves. They want him to have the looks, the money and if he doesn't they don't give him a chance.

Hold on now, I hear you and I see it happening. I also see women trying to accept men for who they are. I have friends who are attractive, wonderful careers, fat bank accounts and paid cash for their luxury cars. And they give that man who is in school or not making that much money a chance to work on a life together. Many men take advantage of that and view these generous women as meal tickets.
I hear you on that and I've seen it happen. You are right. But weren't these women falling for the external package?

In some cases yes, but in many....I was like wtf, he isn't even attractive! I don't know.
They are lonely.
( Lonely ain't the word, it's desperation.)

We can go on and on about this topic?
Quanda aren't you the one in love with Whiteboy? ( He laughs)

Wow, is that how you all view me... the Whiteboy fanatic?
Yes. ( I am horrified.)

Well, first I am not in love with Whiteboy. I am in lust with him. And I honestly have love for all of you. It's not that serious. This is fun, I get a chance to connect with many of you on some level. ( Prays Whiteboy has deleted all of my love sick messages and the marriage proposal!)
Moving right along, are you working on any projects you can tell me about?
Actually I am working with VH-1, on concept of 'The Big T-Bone Show'. It's a dating show where I pick women from a pool of ladies who are interested in dating T-Bone. The difference is that I wouldn't pick them by the way they look. It would be based off of their myspace page or personality profile. They would stay a week and we discover if there is chemistry. I would rate my experience with them and the ladies with the highest perceived compatibility would be asked to stay or return as a semi-finalist. Another interesting aspect of the show is that each week I'd be given a brand new ride to chauffeur the lady around town. There is this exceptional company that customizes cars. You know like 'The Fast and Furious' type cars. They make the best high performance vehicles from the ground up. The company is King Pin Performance.

Interesting concept, I am thinking... considering you'll know a little about the ladies' personalities the cars can be specialized to fit their individual likes. I would like to see this come to fruition. So is there anything we missed on ' I Love New York' due to editing that you'd like us to know about?
Yes, you all know the Bonez is known as the spiritual cat. Well, I am also very spiritual. Bonez and I were tight. At one point we broke out the Bible and shared God's word with our cast mates. It was a really powerful moment. I wished you all could've seen it. On that note, I just want to say that it was truly God's wisdom and blessing to put me in a position to be on the show. I am truly thankful for the opportunity. And I am definitely looking forward to the reunion show. It'll be good to see everyone again.

You guys really keep impressing me with your personalities. You know to some of us, you are characters. Each time I talk to one of you, I realize you are much more than my entertainment. You are really some good men. I am understanding why most of you were chosen. You have this great vibe about you. Where does this come from?
Well it comes from God and my mother. God and family first always. My mother told me when I was young, 'Son if you don't believe in yourself? How do you expect others to believe in you?' So I always believe in myself and most importantly I stay strong in my faith...I believe in God.
( I need to introduce this brother to a few of my single girlfriends.)

You have just shared a Qmoment!