5:11 PMWhat up, gang? I’m finally back home. It’s snowing, it’s grimy, but I saw Star Wars: The Last Jedi on Friday, so I’m happy.

Whys there always huge puddles on the ground under public male urinals? Lol people act like its a contested 3 instead of an open layup

— Jeremy Lin (@JLin7) December 14, 2017

When I first heard that Black Thought had a 10-minute freestyle on HOT97, I didn’t know what to think. I had just seen him at NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert a month or so ago, and it was great, so I didn’t want to ruin that memory with what was sure to be some over-the-top interview with Funkmaster Flex screaming and dropping bombs all over The Roots’ frontman’s flow. There’s always a place for that, but Thought is a god, and I don’t like seeing him disrespected. Then I watched it. And I watched it again. And again. Fam. It’s completely insane.

Now that weed is legal, so to speak, in many places, it’s hard to watch. There are entire facilities full of black and brown folks who sold weed, and it put them behind bars for the rest of their lives. It broke up their families, ruined communities and destroyed careers. Not because someone smoked marijuana, but because the so-called war on drugs was such a massive overplay from the government that was effectively rooted in racism. But now that it’s popular, oh, guess what? Weed is a luxury lifestyle. It’s borderline sickening, but it’s real.

In the early days of chat, there was but one beast. It was AOL Instant Messenger, the original app that got us all hooked on the concept of direct, private, instant communication. Well before texting was the thing, AIM was what people used not just to talk with each other but also to express themselves. It was customizable with colors, there were “away messages” — which were, in some ways, the earliest form of Twitter — and it was generally just vital to life. Now, it’s completely done. But we had to pay respect to the originator one last time.

Saturday night, a legendary New York Knicks player makes a return to Madison Square Garden. No, not Charles Oakley, I’m talking about Carmelo Anthony. The Oklahoma City Thunder, who picked up Melo along with Paul George this summer, are not in fact very good at all, but that’s beside the point. Anthony’s legacy in New York is an interesting one, as the team basically was not very good at all while he was there, and now that he’s gone they’re competitive again. Their new star, Kristaps Porzingis, thinks that the Garden should cheer him.

Free Food

Coffee Break: We’re at the point of the year that if you go to an all-Christmas music soundtrack in your home or office, no one could blame you. We’re 10 days out, so it’s officially time to crank out the carols and holiday cheer. Check out this thread of black Christmas songs.

Snack Time: Queen Latifah is very smart. She’s been in the game for quite a long time, and she knows the game very well. And she’s got a clause in all her movie contracts that says something very interesting.

Dessert: This man is my hero. Atlanta, stand up.