I Have Seen It All...

This choir has decided that EGO by Mrs. Sean Carter would be better as a gospel song.  "I talk like this cuz' Jesus backs it up."  I don't know about this.  Check it out for yourselves:



Next up?  Get Wasted by Gucci Mane (aka inmate #43193209).  "Glory Glory Glory let's all get praying!"  Jesus, don't just take the wheel, take the mic also.

Inner Beauty is Important, but Not Nearly as Important as Outer Beauty

Is that not the best quote ever? I love Ellen Degeneres.  I thought I'd use it as the title for this blog entry just to add a touch of humor to it.

Now let's get to the nitty gritty.  The light/dark skin issue has plagued our people since slavery times.  But when will it end?  Will we ever get past it?  I truly hope so, but just like racism and the natural/relaxed hair issue, I think we are stuck with it.

You may ask what made me think about this.  The answer is... somewhat simple.  Some one on Facebook commented on a status message I'd posted about Ri Ri and C Breezy (another issue of its own).  Usher and Tameka came into the conversation, I mentioned she was ugly, and immediately it became a light/dark skin issue.  Apparently Halle Berry is the poster child for light skinned beauties because she always pops up in these conversations.  It was immediately "so I guess if she looked like Halle Berry or Rihanna" then she'd be pretty, huh?"  WHOA.  Hold the fuck up.  Don't put words in my mouth (or my fingertips actually).

Yes, I am a light skinned black woman.  (Actually I am probably somewhere between light and medium.)  But my mother, father, brother, my aunts and uncles, and most of my 1st cousins are all dark skinned.  I have no hate for darker skinned black folks, nor do I have an exclusive love for only light-skinned people.  I think all kinds of women are beautiful--  from the light skinned Halle and Alicia to Sanna,  Gabrielle, Kelly Rowland, Alek Wek, Tweet (where the hell is she, by the way), Lauryn Hill, Kerry Washington, Angela Bassett and everyone darker, lighter and in between.  Tameka Raymond, however, in my opinion, is ugly.  I don't see why I have to justify the statement.  People have their own preferences.

I just don't get why we as black people have to come back to the dark/light skin debate ALL the time.  It is not even appropriate in many of the situations where the debate is used.  When will we as a people let the shit go?

The Practical Wishlist

The economy is bad.  We know this.  Doesn't stop folks from wanting stuff.  My birthday and Christmas are coming up. Things I want?  Mainly a new digicam-- the current one is broken.  It won't recognize any memory cards (I've tried several, one which was BRAND NEW so I know it wasn't the card) and I get nothing.  I like that new one Samsung has with the screen on the front and back.  Also a 32gb iPod touch.  My MP3 player is on it's last leg.  I have to reset it constantly, it doesn't have the songs organized like it used to be....  Plus the software for it doesn't work on my 64-bit operating system.  Yes I could use Windows Media Player (I think) but it just isn't the same.

But none of that is practical!  I want them, and I WILL get them but just not right now.  Practical items that I'd ask Santa for this year?

1) A pink snuggie.  No need to check your monitor you read it correctly.  I think they are stupid.  I laughed when they came out.  But I cannot deny the usefulness.  It is very cold in our classrooms.  We sit in the same spot all day.  Many of us have blankets in there.  But have you ever tried to take notes while covered up?  You have to choose between being a good student and being warm.  Some days warm wins.  With a snuggie?  I could write notes to my hearts content, type, throw stuff at my neighbors (because yes I do that sometimes, got to keep things lively) and all while wrapped in some Snuggie weirdness.  I'd also take an Auburn snuggie.  War Eagle!

2) Rain Boots.  Right now I have been improvising with one of my pairs of pink Timberlands.  But I feel so bad using them for that purpose.  When it rains, it pours.  And then I have to wade through a lot of puddles to get to and from my car, walk the dogs in mushy, wet, mud-- many times almost falling, and get my feet wet trying to get to and from class.  I just need some rain boots.

3) Gift cards.  I probably spend the most money at Walmart and Shell.  Gift cards for them would be great.  And I'll take Panera or Starbucks.  I prefer cherry Pepsi for my caffeine fix but coffee etc would be great.

4) And last but not least, dog treats.  Dental chews, pig ears, bully sticks.  Whatever.  Stuff they can chew on to keep them busy.

Thank God for Red Lights!

Tonight on my way back from school, the light for me to turn on the main road was red. At first I was kind of pissed. Impatient. Well I am heading down the road almost to the intersection where I turn to reach my apartment complex. Suddenly I see a whirl of lights. At first I thought a vehicle was trying to make a u-turn, but no... it slid out of control, spun around, and then ended up in a ditch. I was in such shock. As I passed it looked as if the car was backing up. I didn't feel right just ignoring it though so I turned around to come back. At that point someone was there helping. I had to continue down the road a bit to find somewhere to turn around to head back towards home. That took maybe 2 minutes. by the time I got back the cops were there. the truck didn't flip or hit anything, so hopefully the driver is ok.  




Thing is, if that light had been GREEN I would have been in the right position to be hit by that truck as it slid across the road, taking me with it into the ditch. What did I learn? Slow down. And appreciate red lights! To most people they mean STOP but they may just be God's way of slowing you down to keep you from crashing!

Think We Don't Need Healthcare Reform?

I get that there are lots of White people in America who don't like Obama. I get that.  I mean what more can I expect, right? But what I don't get is the amount of people who are AGAINST healthcare reform.  I know that all of the people who hate that he is running the country aren't rich.  They can't all afford to get whatever healthcare they need whenever they need it.  I'm sure that many of them are probably unemployed or under employed thanks to GW's great country management skills.

Early in 2008, I hit my head on a piece of metal on my bathroom door while cleaning.  I knew going to the ER would be a long process, but with blood gushing from my head I didn't think that I might have been able to get the laceration sutured at the urgent care facility.  So I end up at the hospital.  my parents met me there.  The doctor, although VERY attractive, didn't touch me.  I noticed that other than dentists and gynecologists, doctors do not touch their patients anymore, but I digress.  He asked what happened, and said that they'd stitch me up.  Well DUH.  That's why I am here.  If I thought that I didn't need some suturing, I would have stayed at home with some neosporin and a bandage.  I got a little bit of local anesthetic, a tetanus shot, and 4 or 5 sutures.

Well my insurance with my job had like a $1500 deductible for the ER.  So I had to come out of pocket.  the ER charge was almost $600.  And there was a sexy charge for Dr. McChocolatey.  Almost $300 for him to ask a question, and tell me something I already knew would happen.  He was fine, but not $300 worth of fine.

Later I had to have some lab work done.  This was after the idiot veterinarian I worked with cut my hours and I'd lost my insurance.  I did the whole COBRA thing for my dental because it only went up about $15.  That enabled me to have oral surgery for an impacted wisdom tooth.  When the surgeon was performing the procedure he found an abnormal cyst that he wanted to make sure wasn't anything that would cause a problem  for me later.  That was another $200.  Oh but wait, for a doctor to INTERPRET the results? Almost another $200.   At this point that is $1,300 of bills, and 20 less hours per week of work.  I ended up being sent to collections.  Finally got it all paid off, but I'm sure that doesn't look well on my credit.

If we had a better health care system, I wouldn't have to struggle to pay for some simple procedures.  I am glad that this bill passed and those who aren't should either get over it, or just write me a check for $1,300 since you obviously are rolling in dough and can afford to pay for any medical care you may need.  Anyone who wants to reimburse me, give me your email address and I'll give you my name and tell you where to send the check.

Come As You Are...

This is something you hear a lot in churches these days.  "Come as you are."  Because your clothes don't matter-- what's in your heart does.  I think people are taking "come as you are" way too far.  My interpretation is that if you can't afford a fancy suit to wear to church, come in what you have.  But some people are ridiculous with what they wear to church.  Have some respect, people!  This is the house of the Lord, I should not have to see your thong every time you get up (maybe if you didn't walk the whole time church is going on I wouldn't notice, but I digress).  First of all, if your pants are so tight or so low-cut that I can see the "v" of your thong, you need to stop wearing them anyway.  Secondly, have some respect for yourself and this holy place.  Yes, it is just a building, but at the same time it's so much more.  I applaud you for getting up and coming to church after you went clubbing, but a change of attire is necessary.  If you have to keep pulling your shirt up over your cleavage or down over your butt crack, you might be dressed inappropriately for church.  Maybe I'm a little old fashioned for my age, but if you can afford to buy the Baby Phat mini skirt then you could easily go to Old Navy, Ross, TJ Maxx, etc and buy a blouse and a skirt.  (But then again that probably isn't REALLY Baby Phat, it's probably Babby Phatt that you got from the flea market, but again, I digress.)

Oh and in case you men thought you were safe, let me say a thing or two.  Just like the women, if you can buy some Coogi, you can head to JC Penny and buy a pair of slacks and a button down, or a polo.  But ya'll need to do better too.

And no it's not just in church.  We have gotten to the point where going to walmart in rollers and pajamas, or with your kids looking like they just came from the trailer park while you are hood fresh.  I've seen people wearing jeans to job interviews-- and wondering why they can't get hired.  I don't care if it's fry cook at McDonalds, you should dress professionally in order to convey to your future employees that you are serious about this job.  If I were them, and you came into my business in jeans for an interview, I wouldn't even waste my time asking you questions-- I'd tell you to leave!  Then in grad school, when we are required to dress professionally, and people think that shirts that belong in the club actually fit the dress code. What Not to Wear shouldn't be a TV show.  It should be a required class for freshman in high school.

Clothes may not make the person, but they make a difference.  

This is who I am...

Who am I? A 25-year old educated Black woman. A Christian. An animal lover. A best friend, girlfriend, daughter, and sister.

I have a Live Journal, but what I write there is mostly restricted. I wanted a place to be able to share some thoughts about the world with everyone. I'm currently in vet school, so my posts won't be daily, but I hope someone somewhere enjoys them. I'll be changing the look of this thing eventually so bare with me.