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Showing posts from August, 2006

Breaking The Rules

Just like there are Little Vixen Rules, there are rules of traveling. A big one for me is as soon as I step on the plane,click the seat belt shut and ,make sure my tray table is in the upright and locked position, I should go to sleep. I usually do this quite successfully and then wake-up on landing. I cll this my "tarmac to tarmac" nap. The T to T nap serves a multitude of purposes. First, I get to catch up on the sleep I didn't get because I was up packing, and I am almost always up packing. I pack mentally first, then leave the real packing to the last minute. Soemtimes, until one hour before I should be showering to go on my trip. Sounds crazy, but its a system. Somewhere in the back of my head is the thought that if the plane goes down, I might miss it because I am alseep. And lastly, the big one. I sleep because if a talker sits in the middle seat, they will hopefully leave me alone if my head is cocked to the side and my mouth slightly open. I would say &

Little Vixen Rules

The kiddos are back in school. For mine, a new school. I try to talk to my kids about school daily, even if they aren't talking back to me. Heaven knows, with a pre-teen, it can be like pulling teeth. They hopped in the car yesterday and I did my usual inquiry..."What happened today? Anything fun?" I got the usual answer at first. "Nothing." I left it at that because I knew the silence usualy draws out more detail. That nothing can be intepreted a lot of ways. "I don't have any friends." It was coming. "Baby, you have only been at this new school a week. It'll come." "Well, no one would play with me at Recess." I sensesd that there was more she wanted to tell. "No?" "Well, they were playing tag and I don't like that game." "Hmmm." "Well, all the kids that like each togther play tag together." "Really?" "Yeah. James like Soga. She likes him back. Mary likes

Catching Up on The reading

With so much going on, its amazing that I had time to read anything at all, and I'm sure I will leave something off the list. But the kids are back in school and its back to business as usual. 1-The Secret Lives of Fortunate Wives by Sarah Stromeyer. This was an acceptable read. People in the suburbs have secrets. They are drug addicts or secretly broke or married but on the DL..... 2-Apex Hides the Hurt- Colson Whitehead. This was good enough that it made me want to go back and read The Intuitionist. 3-Tease-Suzanne Forster. I read this in June. What was it about again? Oh, yeah, It was erotica. And a little strange. Made me feel like she's really been inside an S & M club. Not that I have. 4-What's Done in the Dark, Gloria Mallet. Two sisters hate each other. It was a good story, except it was never clear why they hated each other so much. Sibling rivalry to the nth degree The next two are probably tied for the best reads of the summer-- 5-The Fortunat

Sexy shoes and Good Undies

Miss Kim talked about me on her blog. (Check out the links). Yes, I do wear fur. It's very warm after skiing. I'm not stressed about the minks, they found a happy ever after at the dog food factory. Every part of that little bugger was used. And I sit on leather, both in my car and in my home. And I don't have to tell you that I wear leather on my feet. Not just "leather uppers" but I prefer the shoes that have real, old-fashined, leather soles too. Once you go there, its hard to go back. Kim, girl, I was just giving you fair warning if we were going to be buds. But I have you know I treat the leather uppers and soled shoes like members of my family, sometimes even better than. They come to me and I give them climate controlled rooms with lots of light that I purchased directly from the Container Store. They have luxury front doors that slide in and out smoothly so they have no trauma. They get trips to the shoe hospital when necessary. And usually,

African American Literary Awards

Hello Readers & Friends! I trust you are keeping cool as summer wanes to its end. I am pleased to announce that my book Just Short Of Crazy, was nominated in the "Comedy Fiction" category for a 2006 African American Literary Award. The show will take place in New York in September. Please take this time to cast your vote for your favorites in all the categories that are listed. I am honored to be considered among all of the great writers that were nominated. Thank you for your time and please pass this email on to others! To cast your vote, click here: http://www.literary award show.com/sections/voting.htm Stay Cool and Keep Reading!

Blue Crabs, Right Hooks and Real Peace

August 3, 2006 Crabs in the water. For real. I looked through the green-tinted water and thought that my eyes were fooling me. A blue crab was peeking through the murkiness. He was of a good size and could be part of my dinner like the fish I caught this morning off my hired fishing boat and he knew it too. Crabby nipped at my toes and I yelped, reminded of my anti-natural credo. I don't do natural water. Being in no- air condition land, I have violated that several times in a single day. Its over 100 degrees and the only place where its not sweltering is on the water or at the beach and so I find myself at the Inkwell with all the other black people. There's an atmosphere here not found at State Beach or South Beach. Yes, its rocky at the water's edge, but its the only beach where it sounds like a party, the only beach where the music is just loud enough where you can't help but nod your head. Once you get over the rocks the sand is soft and the water is still en