The only thing that gives me comfort in my distress is the knowledge that I am not the only mother to suffer this type of humiliation. Yes fellow mothers – you may call me Misery; and I do enjoy your company. In what has apparently become my children’s unending quest to destroy my self-esteem, I […]
I am a proud independent voter. I neither kowtow nor subscribe exclusively to any one political party, and that is something I take great satisfaction in. I see merits in the Tea Party’s opinions, the logic of the Republican Party’s view on economics, and appreciate the overarching compassion of the Democratic Party. I am one […]
In a rare opportunity, I had the “pleasure” of watching the news last night (if you count being bombarded with reports of arson and murder as pleasurable) and to my surprise, Isis Brantley was on 11 Alive News! I immediately perked up. I am a fan of her products, and have featured them on M.O.M […]
I thought the water tasted odd, but I drank it anyway. Church service was going exceptionally long yesterday, so I slunk out of the building to go get something to eat. It was noon and they still hadn’t taken up the offering yet. As I cruised down Holcomb Bridge, I saw – to my delight […]
Do you ever get sick of reading and watching the news? I have. You would think the world was going directly to Hell by Saturday morning. Ugh! I went walking with a friend 2 days ago who was feeling really glum about her job prospects. She’d interviewed with one of the four major telecom companies […]
Nadjah ripped open her backpack last week and thrust a sheet of paper in my face. It was a permission slip from her school, requesting my signature to allow my student to participate/try out in the school’s first ever Cultural Talent show. “Presentations must be no more than 5 minutes long and must represent a […]
They say that half of all Americans will be obese by the year 2030 if the trends we’ve seen in the last few decades are not reversed. Think about that: Fifty percent! Take a look at the person sitting across from you right now. If they’re not the one who’s obese, then it means that […]
Move over Tiger Mom…or at least scoot over a tad. There is a new ferocious feline matriarch on the prowl, and her name is “Panther Mom.” And, as her name suggests, she is Black. I was visiting Mom Five Times a few days ago when she finally looked up from her incessantly buzzing smart phone. […]
This year is the 10th Anniversary of Dragon*Con, a multi-genre high fantasy festival/convention which, prior to my great geek awakening, I had never heard of. Imagine my delight when I discovered it was in my very own back yard here in Atlanta! A quick hop on the train with the stroller and 2 of […]
Dear Merciful Father in Heaven. I knew the flight home was going to be bad; I just had no idea HOW bad it was going to be. Like I said, we rushed out of the house early Monday morning with towels still in the dryer and no time to really clean. (And were scolded for […]
As a rule, I usually don’t have a problem with “goodbye” if I’m the one doing the leaving. My departure often places me in a position of power – one in which I have pity on the person(s) being left, because they are going to miss me after all, and not necessarily vice versa. This […]
‘Mzansi’ means ‘south’, but refers specifically to South Africa. South Africa, for all its development and westernization is still Africa, and has some of the most amusing quirks I’ve ever encountered. Most have to do with policy, language barriers and culture. No, you can’t have it your way The first time we went out for […]
Friday, August 12th. The weather forecast called for rain, and a slight drivel brought mist and mud to Qolweni. It was late afternoon, and the cows had already come in from the pasture. Two boys sat in the dimly lit room of the man from Port Elizabeth’s house. Are you tired of being bullied? Are […]
The road to Cape Town is littered with beauty. It is as though God reached into His sack or art and inspiration, gathered a fistful of its contents and cast it wantonly upon this singular corner of the Earth. It is adorned with shimmering lakes and onyx black rivers; as well as cattle, sheep and […]
Sometimes going into the townships is like going into a war zone, and watching the dead remains of the troops that live there miraculously get up day after day to trudge through life. I look at the carnage all around me and ask myself how it’s possible. How do people go on like this day […]
Abortion. Termination. Right to Choose. No matter how you dress it to suit your sentiments, they’re all synonyms for the same thing: a baby is about to die in the womb. As the abortion debate rages on across the globe, advocates for and against the procedure have largely left one crucial party out of the […]
Have you ever been in the middle of doing something strange, bizarre and flat out WRONG with your spouse and paused to ask yourself “Is another couple somewhere in the world doing this exact same thing??” You have? Me too! Remember when you were standing at the altar, and the pastor sold you both on […]
I knew something was terribly off when Charter Communications began to pare down services and channel options for its ‘valued customers’ while charging them the same rates 2 years ago. They started with channels I hardly watched – CSPAN and the like – but when they took away G4 my disappointment gave way to full […]
July 27, 8:06 am: Hey, do you want to go bungy today? 10:16 am: Missed call from 08….. It was Brittany; the White girl with an adrenaline addiction. It wasn’t that I was ignoring her calls and texts – it was just that my body was still recovering from the unaccustomed exertion that I had […]
Have you noticed this anti-kid movement gaining steam in recent months and weeks? Large corporations and small businesses alike are beginning to impose bans on small children, preventing parents and children alike from patronizing particular establishments. Hey, we live in a free world and capitalist society and businesses are allowed to admit whomever they please […]
Yes. That is exactly what you think it is. That is a picture of my BUTT, which Robberg mountain essentially handed me this weekend. It never would have happened if I hadn’t been following after White people, pretending I could should do the things they do. These “white people things” include mountain climbing, shark tank […]