User:Djrun

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Greetings, may peace and blessings be upon each and everyone of you today.

I'm an occasional contributor to Wikipedia and I try to help improve various articles by including facts, verifiable citations/references, and copyright-fee images.

Wikipedia

My first contribution to Wikipedia was on October 16, 2002. Since then I occasionally contribute to different articles and have recently been more active on the website. My goal is to help add facts to obscure geographical and professional sports-related entries. I also like cleaning articles that lack citations, have grammatical errors, or violate the Wikiepdia submission guidelines. In the future I plan on uploading self-made photographs and including them on picture-less articles.

Major Contributions

• MC Ren - Former member of gangsta rap all-star group N.W.A and solo artist in his own right, Ren's unique unapologetic and brash lyrical wordplay have largely been overshadowed by his peers Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube.

• Beaumont, California: History - A small sleepy town on the edge of the Inland Empire, Beaumont has the distinct reputation of housing a plethora of antique stores

• LeRon Ellis - One of the best basketball players to come out of Orange County, California, LeRon went on to become a standout player with the University of Kentucky but was reduced to obscurity after becoming part of the LA Clippers' string of failed NBA draft picks

Minor Contributions

Yes, sometimes I feel like I'm that person in the crowd!

• Anaheim, California: Notable natives and residents - Probably Orange County's most notable city, Anaheim is responsible for producing the founders of Carl's Jr., the inventor of the boysenberry, rock group No Doubt, and the voice behind "Two of Hearts".

• Irvine, California: Notable natives and residents - The master-planned community of Irvine was once the unlikely home of Rage Against the Machine's Zack de la Rocha and has now grown to house many more familiar names in popular culture

• 100 Miles and Runnin' - Although not a quality recording, this EP release by N.W.A would be historic for solidifying the short-lived N.W.A versus Ice Cube rivalry -- stated most promintently on the self-titled track: "We started with five but yo, one couldn't make it / so now it's four 'cause the fifth couldn't take it"

Personal interests

California desert history

Although not quite in the desert, these dunes were used to film parts of the film The Ten Commandments

I enjoy studying 20th century California desert history, especially the region between Barstow and Needles. My interest has led me to acquire vintage maps, antique books, travel brochures, and old postcards from that region. Whenever I get the chance, I enjoy traveling across I-40 and old Route 66 where I vicariously absorb myself into abandoned and forsaken desert communities. Some of my favorite place names from this region include: National Old Trails Highway, Kelbaker Road, Crucero Road, Barstow, Siberia, Klondike, Lavic, Amboy, Ludlow, Chambless, Cadiz, Danby, Essex, Fenner, Goffs, Siam, Ibis, Hartoum, The Needles, Rice, Vidal Junction, Vidal, and many more interesting locations.

Professional sports

I have been a long-time fan of professional sports -- mostly of the NBA and MLB. Although I'm not well-versed in the current happenings in the world of sports, I enjoy sports teams and players from the late 1980's through the mid-1990's. Besides collecting trading cards, I also had a collection of authentic jerseys (including several game worn memorabilia). My favorite NBA team is the Reggie Miller-era Indiana Pacers and the 1990s Atlanta Braves. My favorite players include:

• Reggie Miller (NBA-Pacers)

• Ken Norman (NBA-Clippers)

• Larry Johnson (NBA-Knicks)

• Ron Harper (NBA-Clippers)

• Mark Price (NBA-Cavs)

• Andre Dawson (MLB-Expos/Cubs)

• Shawon Dunston (MLB-Cubs)

• David Justice (MLB-Braves)

• Bip Roberts (MLB-Padres)

• Gary Sheffield (MLB-Brewers)

Music

Music is another one of my guilty pleasures. My musical tastes are eclectic (and sometimes eccentric) ranging from vocal doo-wop of the 1950's and early 1960's, to R&B and funk of the 1960's and 1970's, to electro dance music of the 1980's, to golden era hip-hop of the late 1980's and early 1990's. Today I spend more time collecting music than listening to it, arguably one of my most expensive habits (mainly due to the fact that interest from European record collectors have inflated prices). Obscure records and CDs from small California and regional independent hip-hop labels (a particularly keen interests of German hip-hop collectors) is one of my specialties. Today I am working on a documentary about 1980's electro-rap music from Southern California. My favorite albums of all-time include:

• EPMD's Business Never Personal (1992)

• Nice & Smooth's Ain't a Damn Thing Changed (1991)

• Blahzay Blahzay's Blah Blah Blah (1995)

• Da Lench Mob's Guerillas in tha Mist (1992)

• Big Daddy Kane's It's a Big Daddy Thing (1989)

• Prince Paul's Psychoanalysis (What Is It?) (1997)

• Redhead Kingpin And The FBI's The Album With No Name (1991)

• Run-DMC's King of Rock (1985)

• Wrecks-N-Effect's Wrecks-N-Effect (1989).