Appalachian Feminist Breeder

I heart NOLA

2008-03-13T10:15:00.004-08:00

My mom was kind enough to watch Big Sir so my husband and I could visit New Orleans for my Spring Break. We were only there for 2 full days and 2 partial days but I thoroughly enjoyed myself.

We stayed in The French Quarter at the Bon Maison Guest House. It was right in the heart of the gay district which meant lots of drag bars in close proximity. Our innkeeper was both gracious and personable. He explained that his partner has owned the guest house since the 70's. I reckon there are worse career paths than operating a little inn located at ground zero of one of the most fun cities in The United States.

We did not stay long enough to warrant renting a car so we really did not see much of the devastation that is Hurricane Katrina's legacy. The French Quarter and The Garden District were built on higher ground.

A word about drinking and eating. NOLA has the best places for both of those activities. Crawfish ettouffe, jambalaya, bread pudding, and po boys are some things the NOLA kitchens do best. I ate these delicacies without regard to calorie content or trans-fat. Even moderation should be practiced in moderation. The famous local drink is the hurricane. I like alcohol just fine but I can't drink it too liberally or it feels like the lining of my stomach is being eaten away by acid. Curiously, I am okay with spicy foods.

I loved observing the culture of The Quarter which I imagine is more than a shade removed from modern day Cajun. It is choked with tourists and I believe that I heard more European accents than local dialects. I guess that means that I did not have what some might define as an authentic experience. Truthfully, I had an experience that was authentically me because I usually feel like a tourist in even the most familiar settings. I consider it a gift.

My favorite part of The Quarter is the voodoo souvenir shops. We even visited the voodoo museum! This place was lorded over by a man who claimed such authority on the subject of voodoo that he was featured in the Angelheart dvd extras edition! I love love love religions. I am especially interested in the ways that religions evolve and adapt to modern context. I had a nice conversation with The Voodoo Authority. He claims to be the first Caucasian voodoo priest. I was duly impressed. While I listened raptly to his explanations of voodoo, he seemed a tinge annoyed with my attempts to deconstruct his religion. I wanted to understand the face of a voodoo practioneer in the 21st century, he wanted his practice to remain steeped in mystery. It reminded me of Southern Baptist Sunday school when I would ask too many questions. Who says all religion do not share universal elements when most fanatics of any religion get annoyed with the likes of me?!?!

Of course the best part of the trip was being with my husband and sharing an adventure. I have often said that I would rather share a Motel 6 with him that the Ritz Carleton with anyone else. The fact that we routinely share B & B's and guesthouses make it that much sweeter.

Viva NOLA! Viva true love!

Tedious and Ironic Post

2008-03-13T09:44:00.004-08:00

Big Sir has two favorite words both of which he often misuses. This is not a source of embarrassment for the lad as most of his fellow fourth graders are not savvy enough to correct him. My son liberally peppers most conversations with the words "ironic" and "tedious."

His fascination with irony began innocently enough. He asked me why I was singing along with The Carpenters.

Big Sir insisted, "This music is really bad. How can you actually like it?"

My reply? I told him that Karen and her brother might not make my personal cut for truly compelling music bit I do enjoy their sweet if overly maudlin vocalizing. I further explained that "I guess I enjoy it ironically."

My son nodded in what appeared to be understanding.

As it turns out, my son considers ironic to be a synonym for "cheesy." Specifically, if his personal aesthetic is disrupted by anything, he dismisses it as ironic. To date, Shoney's restaurant, Americana music, and Flavor of Love (on Vh-1) have earned my son's damning label of "ironic." Come to think of it, ironic is a perfect word to describe the enjoyment one derives from Flavor of Love.

Tedious is a word on which he has a firmer grasp. Anything boring is tedious. Also, stressful events, such as a test on Tennessee history for which he has not studied, are described as tedious.

I like the way that Big Sir is experimenting with language and enjoying the process. Words are like anything else. Sometimes you have to play around with them to get them just right.

Fancy Words and the Fluidity of Sexual Preference

2008-02-23T14:04:00.008-08:00

Big Sir is spending the weekend with his paternal aunt and her family who are taking him to a science fiction/gaming convention in their hometown. Does he have cool family or what? This means my husband and I are having what we like to refer to as Grown-Up Time. Grown-up Time includes, but is not limited to, the viewing of R-rated movies,consumption of alcoholic beverages, and staying up late.

I am making homemade mac and cheese from scratch and a big ole salad because our friends are coming to have dinner. One of our friends was one of the first non-family members to hold Big Sir when he was born. She was also the first person, other than his grandmother, to baby-sit him as a newborn. For most of his life, he has understood that she is a woman who has a wife instead of a husband. I explained to him that this was not a big deal. Some people fall in love with those of the opposite sex others fall in love with the same sex. I further explained that the most important thing is that one places their beloved's feelings as a priority.

Well, our friend is (for the first time in 15 years) in a relationship with a man. He is very kind and likable man who treats my friend and her friends well. I am happy for their mutual happiness. The only thing was I knew Big Sir would have questions.

I briefly told him that our friend was bringing over her boyfriend to our house. Without skipping a beat, my son asked if she was a bisexual. He then added that bisexual was a "fancy" word that he knew. I said I guessed that she was.

Big Sir nodded, signaling both his comprehension and pleasure at having the opportunity to use such a 50 cent vocabulary word. Albeit, this one probably won't be found on the 4th grade vocab test.

InTouch With My Kid

2008-02-21T19:16:00.009-08:00

In a previous blog, I wrote about how my son works out with me at the downtown YMCA. I have also mentioned that my son is not the most enthusiastic exerciser. I am his mom and it is up to me to instill habits that will prevent him from suffering diabetes, high blood pressure, and the myriad obesity related diseases that plague many Americans who practice the same level of physical activity that Big Sir would opt for if given a choice.

He has been doing pretty good lately. He likes the cardio machines fairly well because he can play his gameboy while doing them. He also has down pat his routine with the weight machines. (He was taught by a personal trainer who specializes in working with pre-adolescents)

Well, yesterday I left him semi-unsupervised while I ran on the treadmill that was in front and across the room. Normally, I am accustomed to receiving a "visit" from him about every 15 minutes announcing that he has to use the bathroom, get water, etc. It had been about 30 minutes. I walked back to his recumbent bike and the following scene was what greeted me: Big Sir's face was nearly obscured by the issue of InTouch magazine featuring the headline emblazoned across Brittany Spear's face: My Mom Slept With my Husband. The only thing prominent about big Sir's head was a couple of sprigs of hair sticking up over the magazine. The bike pedals were so loose that a late stage polio victim could have pedaled the thing.

His comment upon seeing me?

"Sometimes I like exercise!"

The Blogging Subject Formerly Known As Big Sir

2008-02-21T19:10:00.002-08:00

Big Sir has informed that this extremely apt nickname is "babyish" with the unstated implication that he is no baby. While this is certainly true, my son is Big Sir. He simply is. I grew him for 9 months. I have raised him in a human form for nearly 11 years. I know a Big Sir when I see one. I gave him the name when he was 2 days old.

So. I will try very hard not to slip up and accidentally call him Big Sir in conversation. But for the purposes of this blog, by gawd, he is Big Sir.

PS those of you who know my son in real time, don't rat me out!!!!

Bloggers at the YMCA

2008-02-02T15:02:00.000-08:00

On Thursday, at the downtown YMCA, I was pleased to see The Lovely Em. She is the blog mistress of Joe's Used Toy Emporium. The lady got on the treadmill and wore that sucker out. Damn girl, you better back off!!! You are making the rest of us look bad!

Rocking the Early Vote

2008-02-02T12:09:00.000-08:00

I early voted on Thursday and took Big Sir with me. I wanted the young un' to see democracy in action. So we headed over to the former site of Hollywood Video (off Chapman Highway)and I let him peek as I cast my ballot in this early stage of the democratic primary. I did ask a poll worker if my kid could come to the machine with me and watch the process. All of the folks staffing the polling place were super nice and accomodating. One staffer complimented Big Sir by insisting that my 10 year old surely was 12!

So, we stepped up to the voting machine, and hovered, both of us partially obscured by the curtain. Big Sir immediately noticed that John Edwards had his name on the ballot despite the fact that he had dropped out of the race. He also loudly commented, "Yep, I already knew you were voting for Hillary Clinton." Political affiliations of the various other voters not withstanding, several seemed amused by my son's frank observation.

Big Sir also inquired why I did not vote for every single local office. I explained to him that I never cast a vote unless I have researched a candidate. Some of the local people were unfamiliar to me so I just skipped the question rather than playing eeny meeny miney moe. I did confess to my son that when the real election rolls around around, I just go through and vote for the Democratic candidate. What can I say? I'm a Yellow Dog Democrat. Historically, that phrase is rooted in the joke made by Democrats of old that if they had a choice between a Republican and a yellow dog, they would vote canine! I am glad that, in this election, I do not feel like I am voting "against a Republican" but for a candidate in whom I believe. I am glad my son got to witness my optimism as I participated in the first step of a process that will hopefully put Clinton or Obama in the slot currently filled by a piece of human feces.

my students

2008-01-23T17:57:00.000-08:00

It makes me sad as hell that so many of my college students come in reading at the level my friends and I mastered in the 7th grade. I wish I were exaggerating for effect. Public schools are so poorly funded in Tennessee. There is a grim cycle of poverty and ignorance that seems to flourish for generations. I find it miserably ironic that many Tennesseans have such a high level of knee-jerk patriotism when their families (working poor) pay such a large percentage of their money in taxes! Might I add it is a much higher percentage than the taxes paid by the Republican candidates that they embrace. If we actually taxed the rich, our schools might be worth a damn. The nearly unwavering support for Republicans in a poor mountain state like Tennessee is a source of consternation and depression for me. I know that the Republican support is all about the bible. If a candidate invokes the name of Jesus, he is golden with the average TN. voter. This only makes me more vigilant in doing my job. As a rhetoric and composition teacher, I feel it is my duty to instill a healthy and scholarly skepticism in my students. I am Southern-Appalachian just like my students and, among my people, I want to start nothing less than intellectual revolution.

RIP Heath Ledger

2008-01-22T14:35:00.000-08:00

Last week Brad Renfro died. This week it was Heath Ledger. It is tragic that these young men exited so early. It is curious that the media focuses on young women (Brittney, Amy Winehouse, Lindsay Lohan) who seem to be so out of control when a mere 2 weeks ago there were 2 young men (Renfro and Ledger) still alive but sadly on the brink of extinction. The headlines have been populated with finger-wagging cautionary tales about the girls but the guys are rarely mentioned. I wonder if the expectation of machismo gives young actors a free pass in avoiding public scrutiny. As the mother of a son, I can honestly say that the fact that he has a penis makes me no less convinced that heroin and recreational pill-popping would be a disasterous choice for him. I wonder if the typical gender essentialism bullshit leads people to believe that guys are invulnerable to drug overdoses in a way that women have not been programmed. Trust me when I say that I know "o.d." is not a gender-specific activity. My sister and my high school boyfriend both died of drug overdoses. I also don't think that most overdoes are entirely unintentional but that's a whole new post...

Winter Day

2008-01-22T07:36:00.000-08:00

I am supposed to be tutoring today at my school's educational resource center. That is not going to happen. I have already talked to the ERC director about my weather-related situation. The roads are covered in ice. I live on the back roads of South Knoxville so driving is especially treacherous around my parts. What to do? Well, Big Sir and I are staying the heck home. There is some television watching. There is some video-game playing. There is even some web surfing. I know there are moms out there who use the opportunity of a snow-day to do all kinds of wholesome and crafty activities. They probably have a spool of yarn and glitter glue just waiting for such a gray and snowy day. I'm not one of those moms, Thank God. So, it's looking like a lazy day. Every kid needs a few of those. Come to think of it, adults need that too.

Sunday Afternoon

2008-01-20T17:22:00.000-08:00

This afternoon my son, husband, and I hung out with a newly acquired leopard gecko and listened to Junior Kimbro. Around 4:30, we hit the half price sushi special at Tomo. You heard it hear first. Half price sushi from 5-7 on Sundays. Believe me when I say that my family can eat a hell of a lot of raw fish. Since we were already in the west part of town, we hit Borders. I had a 20 percent off coupon and bought Tom Perrotta's _The Abstinence Teacher_. My husband got Fodor'S New Orlean's 2008 guide. We are seriously contemplating taking a trip over my Spring Break. I split a snickerdoodle cookie with Big Sir.

IndiePlex

2008-01-19T22:00:00.000-08:00

What a super-duper cable channel! This weekend my husband and I did a lot of home fixer-upper kind of stuff which you do when your house is about 50 years old. I am reporting facts--not complaining. After all, we are not McMansion people. Between painting and arranging newly acquired wrought iron gliders, we watched IndiePlex. On friday, it was Rambling Rose with Laura Dern and Dianne Ladd. I can't believe Billy Bob Thorton threw over Laura Dern for freaking Angelina Jolie. Anglina has beauty that seems really specific to a a time and place. Outside of a mall goth context, she is lady wih a nice figure and a series of fucked up facial expressions that seem to reveal some insipid form of mental illness. Laura Dern, on the other hand, is always luminous. Socrates would find that to be true as would wild west cowboys and 60's era hippies. If she were teleported to the future, evolved humans in silver space suits could acknowledge her beauty. Today, we watched Holy Smoke. Fascinating and provocative movie that addresses spirituality and individualism. Kate Winslett and Harvey Keitel are brilliant as usual.

goodreads!

2008-01-16T18:51:00.000-08:00

My buddy Laila sent me an invite to Goodreads.com. It is like a literary version of myspace.com. It's very addictive because there is no better way to find out about good books recommended from people that you like and respect.

The Village People Were Right!

2008-01-14T18:59:00.000-08:00

Big Sir hates sports. He hates running. He hates walking for long distances. He is entitled to his own opinion. He is not entitled to an unhealthy lifestyle on my watch. So. Since he just turned old enough (10 years old), I signed him up for Kid's Weight Training Class at the (suburban and family-friendly) Westside YMCA. Believe it or not, he liked it. I think he enjoyed the counting and organizing aspect of it. He also liked sit-ups. Who knew? Problem is we live closer to The Downtown YMCA. Our city planners love to crow about a downtown renaissance that is family-friendly and cultural. The P.R. folks really should let downtown know about this because the family-friendly part sure alludes the downtown "Y" whose director told me, "We just don't really get kids here." Much the way one might say "we don't really get roaches here." After some polite but distinct wheedling on my part, she is accepting a faxed certificate (from the suburban Westside YMCA) that says Big Sir completed his training. Now he can work out with me without having to drive all the way out to the burbs!

*Note: We live 10 minutes or so outside of the downtown area of our city. In fairness,the area is kind of like Deliverance if the movie were populated with more Latinos. I drove past the traffic light that is a couple of blocks from our house. There were 2 Southern-Appalachian Gothic teens laughing and walking down the sidewalk. There was a young man yelling Spanish into the phone. Yep, I like the neighborhood. Too bad South-Doyle High has so many woes.

Back 2 The Grind

2008-01-13T19:32:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow marks the first day of the Spring 2009 semester. I have done a whole lot of revising when it comes to my English 1010 course schedule. Basically, I accomplished this feat by um...stealing. Keep in mind that new instructors are encouraged to steal ideas from seasoned veterans of the profession. I was looking online at archives of other syllabi/schedules, and came across a particularly good one. I was looking for a course calendar that was heavy on research methodologies and writing instruction. The only thing (and this is substantial) that my course of study is lacking is a serious focus on rhetoric. Rhetoric as in argument. The thing is that instructors--at my college and the state university--are encouraged to veer away from teaching argument and position papers. I wonder if the pendulum will swing back in a few years? Anyhoo, I have reason to be optimistic for a fine semester.

New Year's Brunch

2008-01-01T20:58:00.000-08:00

We had 20 people for brunch and it was quite fun and memorable.

2007 retrospective

2008-01-01T20:00:00.000-08:00

Obligatory 2007 Round-up
-married The Love of My Life
-took Big Sir's bio-dad to court for being an asshat
-became more secure at work
-ended an old but increasingly unhealthy friendship
-solidified several newer friendships
-maternal grandmother died
-moved into first real house (with mortgage NOT landlord)

Spam

2007-12-23T08:11:00.000-08:00

I bought a tin of spam as something of a joke, 3 maybe 4 weeks ago. The spam has set in my cupboard practically taunting me every time I reach in for a can of soup or box of mac n' cheese. You know you want me, you just don't want to admit it. That is what the spam has been whispering. You know what I did? I silenced that spam can!

Last night was Saturday. My husband and I stayed up late to listen to the debut of a song that he wrote. The song was played on WDVX's show, "All Over The Road," hosted by Wayne Bledsoe. Wayne's show runs from midnight to 4 in the morning. Those hours are pretty late for somebody who is accustomed to getting up around 7 in the morning to get her kid off to school. However, we did manage to stay up to hear my husband's recording of his very cool song. The creative process of the song was quite fun as we had 8 house guests drop by at various times to lend their vocals to the chorus. I am glad that Big Sir gets to witness things like that.

Anyway, I decided to make, for my husband and myself, a literal midnight snack. I fried up an entire can of spam and served it with a huge dollop (errr...puddle) of mustard. My husband pointed out that if people actually tasted spam as often as they joke about it, those same people might be Spam Converts!

The trick to making a good piece of spam is to fry it, on each side, to golden-brown perfection. When its all fried up, you gotta serve it with some mustard between 2 slices of white bread with mustard and friend onions. Talk about lunch meat nirvana!

And, somehow, staying up hours past ones bedtime just because you love your partner so much that you can't bear to miss the radio debut of their song is relationship nirvana. Especially when you have some fried spam to enjoy.

What Knox County Zoning Taught Me About Immigrant Mothers

2007-12-20T18:09:00.000-08:00

I have sympathy for American workers who had their jobs "shipped" overseas to a workforce that is poor, desperate,and unbound by OSHA regulations. I am amazed by the American public's lack of depth when considering this issue since many self-affirmed patriots place blame on the foreign workers instead of the companies that give Americans the ax. I even witnessed a strong anti-immigrant mentality among undergraduates at the University of Tennessee. I suppose it makes the American public feel better to blame 6 year old children in the third world who will assemble widgets for a few cents an hour. This newly configured workforce also gets points for its reluctance to bitch about bathroom breaks or health insurance. Foreign workers who "steal" American jobs get a heaping helping of blame, but I sure would like to hear more East Tennessee cussing aimed toward companies who exploit the lawlessness and desperation of the nations in which they build their factories. In short, I would like to hear the often used Southern-Appalachian slur of "them dad-gum foreigners" changed to "them god-damned corporate fat cats." Now THAT is some incorrect usage I can stand behind.

As for the foreign workers over in these parts, I can't say that I blame them for trying to give their own families a better life. I think it is ridiculous for me to make a true comparison between the plight of a Mexican mother risking her life to sneak herself and her kids into this country because of better opportunities with my own desire to get my son into a decent middle-school. Sometimes glimpses of other lives are all that you are afforded. Sometimes that is all it takes to spark a greater understanding.

I do comprehend, in much less visceral way, being told that, well, your own socio-economic level means that you are shit outta luck. I can understand mamas in Mexico who love their kids so much that they will risk anything to give them chances that an accident of birth dictates they are not supposed to claim.

I live in South Knoxville. My son is zoned for a middle school that is rife with problems. He enjoys school and earns standardized test scores in the top 5 percent. In the fourth grade, he talks wistfully about studying Japanese. This might be a possibility if we lived in the Farragut or even Bearden area but we can't afford the real estate in that part of town. By virtue of our bank account, our son is not worthy of an education that would match his drive and ability. By virtue of their nationality, kids in other countries are deprived of developing gifts they might never get the chance to contribute.

I think it would be great if I could end this post by giving some solution to the issue of immigration, or even school zoning, in my own little county. All I really have to say is that I understand any mother, regardless of her nationality, wanting her kids to have the best life possible. I also understand that nations are governed by rules. What if those rules, stripped of their pretense, mean that white North American kids whose parents live in McMansions and drive SUVs that cost more than my house, should get the lion's share of opportunities? It means that the sweet idea that ability and ambition can take any person anywhere is not the American Dream, it is figment of our imagination.

It also means that when I am in the Farragut Fresh Market, and hear two coiffed and manicured moms discussing how much their sons prefer the wonderful athletic programs that the Farragut schools system offers to any classroom work, but "boys will be boys," I want to tell them both to go fuck themselves.

my sex life and my son

2007-12-17T19:33:00.000-08:00

I was raised in a strict Southern-Baptist household. Sex before marriage was considered a huge taboo. My own son is raised to view sex in a thoughtful and conscientious way. I talk to my kid about sex in the context of him feeling love and connection but I don't not necessarily mention matrimony.

For that reason, a friend of mine was surprised when I revealed that my husband never spent the night (that my son knew about) for the first 2 years we were together. We were never open about sharing a bedroom until my son and I moved in with my husband-to- be. This was 1 month prior to our wedding.

It does seem odd that I would not teach my son that sexuality is wrong without marriage but practice such discretion. It is something to ponder. Let me be clear that I have no criticism for moms and dads who make different choices. I think that I chose to only have my partner spend the night when our relationship was well-established because I did not want my son to think that men are replaceable. In other words, I feared that if I were caviler about bringing home lovers, my son would might wonder if he could be easily traded for another model. Is this what it means to be male? he may ask himself. Let me make it clear that I have no problem with consenting adults conducting their sex lives in any way that they choose. But my life is no longer just about me: it is observed and absorbed by my son.

I did not want my son to grow up thinking that only little boys were lovable in his mom's eyes. Furthermore,I did not want him wondering if it was okay to get attached to the man that his mom was seeing. I want him to love with the exuberance of childhood. I don't think a kid should have to examine and ration their feelings against how long mom is going to keep around her newest boyfriend. That is why my husband is the only boyfriend of mine that my son ever met. Not all women do it that way. I know women who trot out their kids as kind of pre-relationship litmus test. I guess they reason that if the guy freaks out early on, then they have not wasted their time. The way that I see it is my kid is my kid--NOT a social experiment. I reasoned that I would introduce my son to a man if my love grew so strong that I could not bear to hide from my partner this most important part of me.

I always knew that if my son ever saw me in any romantic relationship (other than my short-lived marriage to his biological dad)I wanted it to be THE relationship. My son knows that, for myriad reasons, I could not choose his dad for the long-term. I am glad he is able to see an example of a wonderful man who I choose to love.

It is not a new idea (paging Dr. Freud) to suggest that watching how his mom loves will influence how my son expects to give and receive love even in a romantic context. There are many wonderful things about my relationship with my husband but not least of all is the example that it sets for my son.

artistic license revoked

2007-12-17T19:06:00.000-08:00

My semester has ended so I am free to blog with increased frequency. No more grades, finals, averaging, etc.

I am through with the classes that I teach but Big Sir's school is still in session. As a consequence, I will be volunteering 3 days this week. The volunteer work involves stuff that I enjoy. Reading out loud and party-planning. Very good. However, his teacher has hinted that she would appreciate some help with the Big Messy Art Project that will be tackled throughout the week. What can I say about this teacher? She is a hell of a nice lady and truly cares about my son. I have a hard time saying no to her.

But I loathe art projects that have any hint of structure. I cotton to the idea of performance art or squirting tubes of paint on a huge canvas Jackson Pollock style. But buttons and bows and folding paper? I was the little girl who excelled at making prank phone calls not gluing dried macaroni to colored construction paper. My project would always end up looking way messier than stuff created by kids who were a couple of grades younger than me. Embarrasing I tell you! So this is not just an aversion. Truthfully, I am pretty bad at sewing and crafty-craft stuff.

I bet his teacher just needs somebody to help her kid-wrangle. That is fine with me. I prefer the 18-24 set (except for my own kid) but I can deal with some young uns. On my good days, I can make an "art form" out of teaching critical thinking skills to young adults. Can I tackle the brave new world of snow globe creation?

Re/Search

2007-11-25T10:27:00.000-08:00

Ooooooh!!!! Remember those great "underground" books from the 80's and 90's devoted to Angry Women, Modern Primitives or just plain Freaks? I do! I do! I remember a publishing company called Re/Search that mainly distributed their wares through indie bookstores. In my hometown, one could find Re/Search books at The Printer's Mark. The Printer's Mark was a little downtown bookstore that is long closed down. (The following side note serves as further Printer's Mark trivia: The former owner is a bearded man with a slight speech impediment who hit on me in an excruciatingly awkward way though he conveyed complete confidence in his women-wooing ability. He approached me with the promise that if I took him back to my apartment, I could choose whether to drive him to his mother's home in Greenville, Tn or he would just take a taxi. The choice was mine. All of this even though I displayed not one whit of interest in the man. A little while later, I saw him at Tomato Head [local veggie eatery] with a bona-fide DATE who was being snarky and condescending to the server.) Anyhoo, I was perpetually broke during this period of my life (early 90's when I was a late teen/twentysomething who had just left home)and never had the bread to buy fancy books.

Well! Fast-forward 15 years later and I find out my hubster has a collection of Re/Search books! I am in hog heaven.

I accidentally left a couple of these books lying on the coffee table. My husband pointed out that I should exercise greater caution because my son could read these um...somewhat controversial tomes if I left them in such a conspicuous place. He was right of course. Certainly, I don't think that 10 years old is the right time of life for my son to find out details about the S&M underworld. But, you know what? I kind of hope that when he reaches adulthood, he thinks it is cool that we still have these books. Wonder if they will be collector's items?

Speaking of wondering....I wonder what the moms of the people in these books think of their offspring being profiled as a proud member of the freak community? I like to think that I would be proud of anything that makes my son proud. Of course, it is easy for me to talk. My son is in a phase of life where he is winning blue ribbons and notoriety at 4-H public speaking contests NOT leather night at The Hellfire Club.

8 things

2007-11-19T16:14:00.000-08:00

Whew! This has been quite a spate of list-making. My friend Katie Granju (her blog is listed on the side of mine) tagged me to list 8 random things about me. Here goes...

1. I have the biggest differential between my verbal and quantitative IQ that The University of Tennessee Disability Services has ever documented. As it turns out, I am much better with words than numbers.

2. A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole is all-time favorite book.

3. My little boy consumed nothing but breast milk till he was way past a year old but he still had 3 distinct chins. He looked like the Michelin Man with all of his rolls!

4. I fell in love for the first time when I was 31.

5. My little boy could live on hot cheese flavored popcorn and pickled okra.

6. I am a Unitarian, my husband is an atheist, and my son is a Southern-Baptist but we all get along really well.

7. I miss Robbie's Pancake House (used to be on Kingston Pike in front of where now stands TJ Maxx)

8. I am not a big woman but I'm a pretty good weight-lifter.

2007-11-17T19:38:00.000-08:00

Motherhood (and personhood) is about growth and change. Therefore, I don't think it would be entirely self-indulgent for me to borrow a friend's interesting survey:

10 Things I Liked in High School and Don't Like Now
1.R.E.M. (Okay,I still like them but not with such fanatical zeal)
2.arguing for the sake of arguing
3.dressing to look thin (instead of dressing to express personal style)
4.the concept that everything is black or white
5.make-up on a regular basis
6.the taste of a cigarette
7.Larry King Live (or dead)
8.writing about angst
9.Crystal Light pink lemonade
10.microwavable bagel dogs

10 Things I Did Not Like in High School That I Like Now
1.The satisfaction of a job well done
2.home organization projects
3.getting up early (sometimes)
4.freak folk (the musical genre)
5.dating just one guy (I married him)
6.tofu
7.politics
8.PBS
9.putting first the needs of loved ones
10.gainful employment

Things I Never Liked
1.right-wing politics
2.Southern Baptist anything (except my family which may sound contradictory but I can acknowledge and embrace that fact)
3.mushrooms
4.hair-metal
5.Monty Python
6.math
7.people with controlling personalities
8.air-conditioning on high
9.itchy clothing
10.science fiction

Things I Have Always Liked
1.kids
2.chocolate Hostess cupcakes
3.reading
4.running
5.smart and funny lefty men (married one)
6.Devo
7.golden retrievers
8.Facts of life reruns
9.Carson McCullars
10.travel

The Feast of Love

2007-10-21T18:03:00.001-07:00

My book club is reading The Feast of Love by Charles Baxter. I just bought it today. We will meet and discuss on Nov. first.

A few weeks ago, I saw the movie starring Morgan Freeman and Greg Kinnear.