Wednesday, January 12, 2011

no phony bolognie

Mrs. Loney was my bus driver from kindergarten to sixth grade. She also was a member of my church and close family friend. She drove her bus with an iron fist. I remember one time some kids were acting up and she pulled the bus over. There were about six of us left and I was about two minutes from home. We stayed there for what seemed like forever until she decided we had all learned our lesson. If we misbehaved she would ask what our parents would think.....and then call them that evening or tell them on Sunday so we would find out.

She took her job seriously. We never had to worry about the trip to and from school. If we weren't met by an adult she made sure we got to our door no matter how long the line of cars was behind the bus. Along the way, she taught us about respect and responsibility.. She knew when we got report cards; always celebrating our successes and giving us encouragement when we needed it.

Today, two little girls in the after school program where I teach, asked me for a ride home. They didn't want to walk past the MEN hanging outside on their way home knowing they would call out for them to come over. The other teacher asked the girls what they thought the men wanted and one of them answered: "I don't know but I don"t want to find out".

Where are these children's Mrs. Loneys? Instead of a free bus that makes sure people can shop with ease, how about a Charm City Circulator that ensures our kids can get home safely; at least a ride home on a dark, cold winter's night. If we don't start investing in our kids; helping to fight the horrible circumstances some of them are surrounded by, how can we expect them not to succumb to their environment?

Monday, January 3, 2011

get out the way!


yes Kim K. You look a lil "cray cray"









ughhh! i really am my own worst enemy sometimes. i think too much about everything and that stops me from doing anything. for example, this blog. it was meant to be a way to hone my writing skills and put down on paper (well computer screen) how i feel about topics big and small. the other day, i decided i wanna talk about kim kardashian's new cornrowed hairdoo. i had a lot of witty comments in my head......"you got all that butt and every african-american football player on speed dial. can we at least keep a hairstyle?" and in response to the fact that she took a nap and woke up with this new look..."uhhh, no one sleeps while getting their hair braided..it's one of the top ten pain causing events a black women goes through.....and usually a 8 hour process".

so i have these things i wanna say and i sit at my laptop and freeze. i start thinking about kim kardashian who i really like and who gives me a serious case of butt envy (i mean really if i had that butt, i could probably rule the world!). i don't want to hurt her feelings! i think about all my white good girlfriends....i don't wanna make them uncomfortable! so, i froze. i have been staring at this screen for an hour. you wanna know what i realized? kim kardashian could care less what i think about her and my true friends know my heart. i will stop censoring what i want to say and just write! hey look...i did it!