Everyday STUFF
Saturday, December 11, 2004
Saturday Night Live, Well it's Saturday Night and I'm Alive
Miracle of Miracles, I've met my first blog-pal. Her name is Bella, and I read her email today. She welcomed me to blog-dom which I found extremely hospitable. She's also a mom, and according to her profile, she lives Down Undah. Reading her profile made me think of my friend Euan from Oz (Australia). He used to bring his huge green parakeet to work with him, and as his office was next to mine, I could hear his bird asking for him whenever he left the room...."Euan"......"Euan"......."Euan". He was a cute, old bird, but I dared not get too close to him. If he was uncomfortable you could see his feathers ruffle up, similar to a cat when it's hair stands on end.
One of the most hilarious moments at work occurred when our CTO (Chief Technology Officer) David, from South Africa entered Euan's office, admired the bird, and then reached out to pet the animal. WHY THE HELL DID HE DO THAT?? The bird clamped it's beak around David's finger and David started swinging his arm up above his head, then down below his knee, as hard as he could, at least three times before the bird let go, fell down, and rolled across the floor, hitting the wall. David was visibly shaken, Euan was apologetic (because management was already on the fence about allowing Euan to bring the bird to work with him), but I started laughing hysterically! I couldn't believe such a bright and accomplished man would be so foolish as to stick his hand in front of the mouth of a wild animal....I mean, he wasn't straight outta the jungle, but he WAS an exotic bird, and a very large one at that. What did he expect? A kiss on the cheek? Did he think he was I think my hysterical laughter helped the situation actually. It lightened the mood in the room because poor Euan was mortified at his little baby being thrown across the floor, and David was stunned, humiliated, and pissed off about being bitten by the bird. I tell ya, that was one of those, "I needed that" type of laughter that sends the endorphins into a frenzy and makes you feel high as a kite. I LOVE that kind of laughter. You know, the Bible says that "laughter is as a medicine", in other words, it's healing to your body, and there is scientific proof to back that up. I've read about it somewhere.
I was learning how to browse through blogger profiles tonight and saw some very interesting people. One blog had a link to a site that lists the 11 rules of Blog Etiquette. I read it and thought it was sensible. I learned that if you mention someone in your blog that has a blog, you should insert the hyperlink to their site, so I've done that above with Bella's site. I'll have to go back and edit my previous entries where I reference my friend Anne.
Do any of you enjoy watching HBO's The Wire? I have to admit it is my guilty pleasure, just as The Sopranos is when they are in season. The gentleman that plays Stringer Bell on the program is my favorite. His real name is Idris Elba....is that pronounced with a short i or a long i? Anyway, from what I gather, he is a British bloak that was one of very few successful Black Tele (TV) Actors in the UK. I wouldn't know, as I don't watch British TV here in the states, but I must say I am a fan. I saw him in my friend's show Soul Food on Showtime, actually I have two friends that played main characters on that show, and I also saw him featured as the leading man in Angie Stone's recent music video, "love it when you love me baby"...not sure of the title. I look forward to the last couple of episodes and hope the show will be renewed.
I think the appeal of watching those two shows, in particular, is it gives me a view into a sub-culture that I am not familiar with. I mean, family structures, loyalty, protagonists, antagonists, that is all familiary, but the regional vernacular, the scenery, the euphemisms, it's all very interesting. I'm from the West Coast, and both of these shows are based on East Coast cities. Baltimore and New Jersey, respectively. It's akin to my Cultural Geography class in college which I enjoyed immensely. I guess I just like learning about people, and groups of people. I went through a phase during elementary and junior high where I read nothing but biographies. I read every book published at that time about Helen Keller, Jim Morrison, Quincy Jones, and a biography by Brit Eklund. I was reminded of Ms. Eklund when I watched the Geoffrey Rush film portraying the life of Peter Sellers on cable tv this past week. Her role was played by Charlize Theron who was okay. Geoffrey Rush is a genius. I enjoy watching him every time.
Speaking of movies, I saw Bridget Jones II: The Edge of Reason recently. I must say, I LOVED the first one, and I enjoyed this one, but it wasn't the same. Would I recommend it? Yes. Renee, Colin, and Hugh are adorable again, but I think there could have been more effort put into the script. There's good chemistry though. I brought this up because I truly felt that the soundtrack made paying to see the movie worthwhile. Seriously, I wanted to run out and buy it that instant. Whoever was in charge of music for this flick certainly has a lot of SOUL. I mean they had Sting, Mary J. Blige, Carly Simon, Beyonce, Annie Lennox.....it was the bomb. I was shakin' my tailfeather in my seat. I think I have to add Bridget Jones Diary to my profile as one of my favorite movies. I usually can only think of dramas when I'm asked about favorite movies.
As for music, well, that will take another four hours if I travel down that path, but keep your panties on, I'll get 'round to it soon enough. a'bientot
- posted by Suzanne @ 8:41 PM 0 comments
Saturday, December 11, 2004
It's Saturday afternoon and such a lovely day in Los Angeles. After weeks of weather in the 40's, 50's, and 60's, it is in the low to mid 80's today. Oh, I know this is an odd time of year to have such weather, but California's climate gets weirder every year. I don't remember having 40 degree weather during the day when I was growing up. I think it hailed two or three times that I can remember, yet just a few weeks ago we were driving home from my parents' home, passing through Lake Elsinore and there were three and four inches of snow on every car! The hilltops were covered with snow, the grassy lawns and soil covered plots of land were covered with ice. It was amazing. My children were in awe with their mouths visibly hanging open. I just knew one of them would have drool dripping at any moment. It was an anomaly.
I've just spent the last hour or more reading archives of my friend Anne Hefley's blog. Discovering her blog last week made me feel guilty that we hadn't been in contact for so long. I knew that she'd had a bad time after CP.com, but many of us were. What I didn't know about was the depression. I know what that can do to someone and how disabling it can be. I don't think I'm immune from it either, I just know when I'm going there, I fight like hell to make a u-turn.
Back to Anne's blog...I started searching the archives, back to the last time she and I worked under the same roof, somewhere around mid-2002. After reading through a few weeks' worth of entries, I found the entries that were made when we re-connected in late April/early May. Part of it was curiosity (was I a good enough friend that she would have mentioned me in her blog), maybe part of it was vanity (does she think fondly of me?), and part of it was guilt. Guilt that I, had I been available to her, could have helped her through that rough patch. I mean, in a way I think I was helpful. She had an increase in income, albeit temporary. My philosophy is to always network for good, meaning, I always network with people and refer them for opportunities, employment, housing, education, or otherwise because it is a form of good will toward man. I have personally been the recipient of this kind of good will my entire life. EVERY job I have had was obtained, at least in part, by a personal referral or recommendation.
There is a difference between a referral and a recommendation. If I refer you to someone for a job, it doesn't necessarily mean that I vouch for your performance, it just means that I believe you have the skills to perform well in that particular role. If I recommend you for a job, it means that I am personally, sort of guaranteeing that you will do a good jor for someone. In Anne's case, I highly recommended her. I was always very fond of her when we worked together at CP.com and was sad when she chose to leave. I was also sad when we started getting retention bonuses to continue working there and she wasn't there to benefit from that. It was very honorable of our employer to do that for us. They were honest and straightforward about the nebulous direction the company was heading and to keep us happy, keep us working, keep our minds off the stress, they decided to compensate us. I'm not sure how they established who would get what. I think it had to do with rank or salary level, whether you were single or married maybe, and how long you had been with the company. At any rate, I was thrilled when I received my first bonus, then my second, then my third. The check increased by several thousand dollars with each incremental installation. It was like having Christmas in June. I bought my Suburban, moved from Studio City into the Larchmont/Hancock Park area, purchased new furniture, etc. I even bought my stepson a car (a bucket) and had it delivered to him at college. It didn't cost me much, and I was happy to do it. He was working hard, attending college on a football/athletic scholarship, and he needed transportation. Sometimes, something so small to one person can mean the world to someone else. I know that the kindness of others has lifted me up tremendously when I have been down. Kindness that is easy to give. I mean, I may have spent $500 on buying him that old, raggedy Lincoln Towncar, and maybe spent $200 for shipping it, but it meant the WORLD to him. He thought he had a Rolls Royce. He was SO happy to have his own vehicle, and I remember that feeling when I was young. The liberation that owning a car brought with it. It meant freedom....freedom to roam wherever you wanted, whenever you wanted. It was a gift for me to be able to do that for him and I knew he genuinely appreciated it. I used to laugh so hard listening to him tell me how his friends always wanted to ride in HIS car instead of their own. It was large enough to fit several football players, as compared to the compact vehicles his friends owned. He would describe how they all pitched in on gas and went cruising together. Even when it snowed, and he didn't have a working heater in the car, his buddies would pile up in the car with him and they would keep each other warm with their body heat. I was proud to see him committed to staying in school, whatever the personal sacrifice.
This younger generation, I know I must sound old, but they just don't have the same balls that we were raised to have. I was taught that nothing would be given to me, but that I hard to earn it. I was taught that if I could save a few bucks on my purchases, I would be a fool not to take advantage of it. I was taught to respect my elders and my teachers. I was taught about manners and etiquette, about cleanliness and punctuality. I was taught that I was responsible for me and that I couldn't rely on others to be successful. I was also taught about kindness. With all of my parents' shortcomings, they were good people. We just weren't good together. My mother used to take us to the bank, Gibraltar Savings in the Carson Mall, on Saturdays, at least once or twice a month, to make $100 deposits. These deposits or savings would be sent to her father, and her uncles in the Philippines. She made us (my twin sister and I) make deposits into our own savings accounts and taught us how to be responsible for managing the account by making entries in the passbook/savings book. What she did was teach me how to give to others, even when you aren't rich, or affluent. Her small deposits equated to a nice stack of cash in the Philippines when you consider the foreign exchange ratio. It showed her family loyalty and her graciousness. These are things I try to teach my own children, knowing that one day, they will be influential adults and have their own children to pass these attributes on to.
It's so difficult in this time to teach children these things. They are so distracted with homework, sports, or music classes, video games, and MTV/VH1/BET, etc. When I was a kid, I went to my local, public school, within 3 miles from my home, which meant I could walk to and from school. My children have mostly been in private schools all of their lives, so they don't get to learn the street smart skills I had to in order to negotiate the streets on the way home. They are driven to school each and every day. I didn't have after-school enrichment like they do, so I went home, did my homework if I hadn't already completed it at school, and I started preparing dinner per my mother's instructions. She would call us punctually at 3:30 to make sure we made it home (she didn't work from the time we were born until we were in the 3rd or 4th grade) and give us instructions on what to do for dinner. Brown the ground beef in a skillet, or stir what she put in the slow cooker that morning, or make a pot of rice, or boil noodles for spaghetti, or shred cheese for tacos, or make a fresh, green salad. She was good at making her money work for her, and good at providing nutritious meals for us. We drank lots of milk and water, and we always had a fresh green garden salad before dinner. She didn't use canned or frozen vegetables, it was always the real deal. It's difficult with the distractions our kids have to teach them the things we were taught considering commute times, etc. There just aren't enough hours in the day. We don't get home after school until 6 p.m. My second grader sometimes stays up til 9:00 p.m. doing homework at night. My eighth grader stays up until 10 p.m. and there are endless "projects". Either a history, or science, or english, or geography project. My second grader has to do a community service project over the winter break and I have to take photos of it to "prove" that he did it, along with helping him do a report on the activity. Whatever happened to a good, old-fashioned Christmas vacation, where you actually just have a vacation? I thought vacation meant you don't work.
I'm way off track. Back to Anne. I was happy to recommend her and facilitate her contract gig at USS.com. It was comforting having someone I knew working with me, and I suppose I was searching through her archives to see if she made any comments about that period, or about me. I wanted to know if I had let her down by referring her to a place that I myself was miserable at. I wanted to know if she harbored any resentment toward me because the idiot she worked for was such an idiot and went through copywriters like a fat man goes through a bag of cookies. I wanted to know if she knew just how fond I was of her, and if she felt the same. I wanted to see if there was anything that I should have recognized in her that would have triggered me to help her through that rough patch.
I think I found the answer. I mean, she clearly understood that the person she reported to was an idiot (per her blog entries), so I feel okay with that. But she mentioned in her blog that she really looked forward to working with someone at USS.com that she had previously worked with, and that must mean me. So yes, I think the feelings were mutual and I'm at ease with that knowledge.
It's funny, I'm finding that she and I have more things in common than we ever knew about through casual conversation. We've had similar experiences in our lives. Again, I'm glad we've re-connected, and happy to know I have a friend in Baltimore that I could visit if I were on the East Coast.
It's cooling down now, after an hour or so of writing. It will probably hit the high 30's/low 40's tonight, requiring me to turn on the central heat. The cold weather is not good for my body. It causes aches and pains, like just before the rain comes. I do enjoy it better than the horrible dry heat of summer in the Valley of the Stars.....
- posted by Suzanne @ 2:31 PM 0 comments
Friday, December 10, 2004
Hey Nonnie Nonnie
Wow, this has been a full, productive day. I was out the door at 7 a.m., did my rounds of drop-offs, purchased blueberry muffins and bagels for my number two son's State Report on Michigan (blueberries are the state fruit maybe?), then I attended a meeting from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. It was longggggg but productive and enjoyable. Then I picked up everyone, went to the post office, grabbed dinner, and returned home after 7:30 p.m.
Let me tell you about my breakfast....for those of you with a discriminating palate, you will enjoy this: I ordered a chicken sausage fritatta. The chicken sausage in and of itself is a treat. It's light and savory, full of herbs and spices, without being "spicy". The fritatta (aka omelette put under the broiler so the cheese gets a little crunchy) had sun-dried tomatoes, pesto, and feta cheese. It was a mouth-watering combination of sweet (tomatoes), savory (pesto), and salty (feta) that just feels like fireworks on your tongue. Was that vivid enough? I saw stars, the earth moved under my feet, I jumped over the moon....Okay, I'll stop already. I had fruit instead of potatoes on the side and a GIANT hot chocolate. I've never seen hot chocolate done quite like this.
My little brother D-Ditty dropped in for a brief moment just to give me a kiss on the cheek and say hello. I happened to be meeting at a restaurant across the street from his home. He's so grown up....he hit the big 3-0 this year. He's shaved his head bald and is keeping his nose to the grindstone as he aspires to become a filmmaker. He's sold three scripts in the last year, after working as a Production Assistant for many years. He attended UCLA School of Film and dropped out just a few credits short of graduation to accept a full-time paying gig for a major network. It's hard when you're young and poor to turn down money over finishing a few classes. Especially here in LA where the cost of living is so high. We're all, collectively, pretty proud of the old boy though. He's distanced himself from the clan, became a vegetarian, and is soul-searching. Last I saw him, he was sharing that he really enjoys Reiki and he was describing his shakrahs to me (forgive me on the spelling). I told him whatever rocks your world is fine with me, but don't fall off in the deep end and come crying that you got bit in your butt. Some of ya'll know what I'm talking 'bout. Anyway, it was wonderful to see him today.
My dear friend Mernie became a blogger today. We're both so excited. This blogging stuff is very liberating, even though I'm a big, fat chicken....I won't use my real name. Ridicule me if you will, but I have children and must maintain a certain sense of decorum :-o) Anyway, Mernie is quite the orator, so I imagine her blog will be quite entertaining. I'm not sure what genre of blog it will be. She may do journal entries, or she may write poetry, short stories, songs, or even screenplays. Never know. It will be a nice retreat for me to sit back, read, enjoy, and be surprised. She might make me ask "Wha?" and what's so nice is I'll be able to get an answer!
The boyz have basketball practice at 8 a.m. tomorrow morning...so much for sleeping in. My brain feels pulverized so I must get some shut-eye. Good night, sweet dreams. OH, I've added my email to the site, so feel free....
- posted by Suzanne @ 9:43 PM 0 comments
Thursday, December 09, 2004
Don't Believe the Hype
Whaddya know? I had post-journal-entry-remorse last night and this morning for writing about the "news" I heard about the musical group "Destiny's Child". I felt low because it felt like I was gossiping....guess I was, but I don't like gossip. Hypocritical, oxymoron, dichotomy? Whatever.
As I was driving my kids to school at 7 a.m. while listening to my eldest son's FAVORITE radio station...KIIS FM with Ryan Seacrest, they announced that Destiny's Child would be the live in-studio guest this morning. I thought, wow, how fortuitous that this would happen today! I will confirm that Michelle was kicked out of the group as I had posted last night. I patiently listened as I dropped off kids at one, two, three schools. I endured all of the commercial advertising so the radio station could "pay the bills". I endured Gwen Stefani's new, irritating, but catchy song, "What You Waiting For?"
Low and behold they arrive, and guess what?......They were three-strong. Michelle was there and was being Ms. ChittyChatty. THE HYPE LAST NIGHT WAS WRONG. Never again will I post rumors or gossip on this blog. It is a disservice to anyone who takes time out of their precious life to read my blabberings. So sorry.
I asked my friend and host of last night's birthday party if she had the chicken and waffles catered from Roscoe's. She said her two daughters cooked it. I was floored. I emailed her back and asked if she was an in-the-closet-gourmet-cook :-o) I know the answer is no because she has shared that she doesn't cook much, outside of spaghetti, or eggs and waffles. She's on the road touring quite frequently and has staff to take care of that. Nice fantasy for me. Someone to cook the meals, pack the snacks and lunches for kids, wash the dishes, mop and vaccuum the floors, dust the house and blinds, clean out the toilet and scrub the tub. That's my idea of Fantasy Island. That would be heaven for me. I'm one of those who ignores those necessities for as long as I can, until I can stand it no more. Oh, sure, I teach my boys how to do much of it, but as any child, they would rather do something else. I always HATED doing house chores, but being the perfectionist/workaholic that I am, I learned how to do them from my mother and ALWAYS did a superb job. I used to love to make the toilet sparkle. I loved washing the dishes and stacking them perfectly in the drainer so that every dish and utensil fit perfectly and wouldn't fall off. I learned how to fold clothes patiently and perfectly. I was always better at that than my sister. In fact, maybe that's why we didn't and don't get along too well. I take alot of pride in my work. In everything I do, really, and I think that pisses her off. I figure, why do it if it's gonna be half-assed? I take that after my mother. Isn't it funny....no matter how poorly a daughter gets along with her mother, eventually she WILL turn into her mother in some form or fashion. No matter how much you strive to be different, you will always bare similarities to her. She is the one who taught you how to be a woman, even without verbally instructing you, you watched her your whole life. You have mannerisms like her, even if you think you don't. Interesting thing about life.
My dear friend and former co-worker Anne Hefley, the blog celebrity, emailed me back today. It was so good to hear from her. Last we saw each other she was going through a really tough time, and I was happy to be able to bring her on board at my company, however short a time she was there. She is funny, smart, pretty, and she's a tough cookie whether she realizes her own strength or not. I always think of her walking around in combat boots. I think she used to do kick boxing or something. Her blog has been written up in newspapers and nominated for blog awards. One critic/writer said that she is a talented writer and he could see her being a great novelist. Do you see that Annie? Is this an aspiration of yours? If this is a indeed a goal of yours, then take it by the reigns honey and hold on tight. Your writing is melodic, honest, and truly paints a picture. It has a visual quality to it. I do not consider myself a writer, but when I write grants for non-profit organizations, the Exec Director always compliments me and says it reads beautifully. I am happy to receive the compliment, but I guess because I don't consider myself a writer, it's hard to take the compliment. That's why this blog is going to be an important tool for me. It's like exercise for my writing skills. I just blabber on like I'm speaking, and it rolls out on the keyboard. Thank God I'm a fast typist. I have so much to say and so little time to write. Anne called me, "Miss Beautiful" in her email. That felt nice.
There is so much inside of me. I've endured much tragedy in my life, but always hanging on by my fingernails, I'm not one to rollover and die. When I find the courage to share some of these incidences every blue moon with a friend, I always say that what I went through was so horrible, but it's in my memory like a book that I once read. After reading the book, I closed it, and it's not a part of me anymore. That could just be denial, but I refuse to let past hurts dictate what my life is going to be. We are taught that people are a product of their environment. To a certain degree, I agree with this statement. However, one does not have to accept the cards that are dealt to them. We, as humans, have the ability to rise above our challenges and press forward. I recently read a quote from Malcolm X while doing research. He said, "You can blame a person for knocking you down but you can't blame that person if you refuse to get back up. . . . However much slave history taught us about the injustice and misery we as a people had suffered, it did not excuse us from assuming responsibility for ourselves and each other by altering its course." Quoted from: Journal of a Black Conservative by William L. Thomas, Jr. Two recording artists say something similar: Amel Larrieux sings, "I know you're down...but when you gon' get up? I see you're down...but when you gon' get up?" and Macy Gray sings, "Get up, get out, and do something. How can you make it if you never even try?"
My sorrows are fruitless, like dry withering vines if I do not learn from them, be fruitful, and help others from falling into the same traps I once did. Sometimes life can beat you down so badly, you feel like you cannot stand up, but it's at those times, if we can muster up every ounce of strength we have, even when we feel we have none, that we can rise to the occasion and become equal to the task. Man that was a mouthful. I couldn't type fast enough.
We Americans, at least those that were born and raised here, should have a goal of visiting a third world country early in life. We are so spoiled here. Well, maybe not spoiled, but definitely privileged. We have flowing, fairly clean water, fairly clean air, toilets, free education, publicly supported parks and recreation centers, freedom of speech and religion, civil rights, human rights. There is nothing we cannot achieve here if we truly are determined. My point is, if we step outside of our environment for just a moment and imagine ourselves in someone else's shoes, we would realize how truly blessed we are. Our day-to-day problems would seem so small compared to what someone else on the other side of the globe is going through. Whatever your views on HIV/AIDS are, consider this: in some countries, AIDS is the number one killer of women because they have no protection from rapists that do not wear condoms. They are violated in a violent physical sense from the act itself, but they are also robbed of quality of life and of ever achieving long-term goals they have established for themselves because of the disease that was inflicted upon them. Some women, even very young women, have to live in fear just to do daily errands, like going to the market. Something as simple as that can cause you to be vulnerable to an attack and alter your life forever....just for going to the market. Think about that the next time you feel like you just can't take what's happening to you in your life. There is always someone, somewhere, going through much more than you could ever imagine. If you do this, I promise you, you'll find the strength.
Peace. I'm all talked out.
- posted by Suzanne @ 8:48 PM 0 comments
Wednesday, December 08, 2004
Back in the Saddle Again
Wow, it's 9:32 p.m. on a Wednesday night and my children still aren't in bed. We just got home from Mel's birthday party. It was so nice. They served fried chicken and waffles, and fries. For those of you not from LA, this is a popular "Hollywood" dish served at the famous "Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles". Of course there was a birthday cake and vanilla ice cream also. It was about 45 degrees outside and there was a dozen or so kids playing basketball until they were soaked with sweat. To protect the identity of friends and family I will use aliases in my blog. Mel's mom is considered a major recording artist and she has a home that befits her title. The basketball court on the estate is pretty much regulation size and it sits on a plateau, elevated above and behind the home. 45 degrees is COLD for Los Angeles. Don't laugh, we know we're spoiled out here, however, speaking as a native Californian (yes we do exist) this is chilly willy weather. I hope none of the kids catch a cold. Unusually, there was a lot of conversation about music tonight. Someone shared that Michelle, a member of the music group Destiny's Child, was fired today. They said she was performing live on BET with the group and fell down. She purportedly blamed Tina Knowles, mother of Beyonce, for loosening the heel on her shoe and intentionally sabotaging her. Apparently, Beyonce and Kelly didn't attempt to help their bandmate to her feet, they waited and allowed an assistant to do it. Wow. How cold is that? I sat silent listening to all of this in awe. They said Beyonce's father and manager of the group, Matthew Knowles, fired her. This sounds like history repeating itself. Now I know for some of you, you're wondering how does this mother of four/retired career-woman even know anything about this youthful stuff? Well, the answer is I am an eternal youth....in a good way. I keep on top of information from many industries because it interests me. Music is a passion of mine, always has been. While we were chatting and listening to each other, the music du jour was Snoop Dogg's new album. Some jazzy/old school/adult sounding cuts on this cd. Made me want to purchase it. One of the songs had a mature sounding male singer on it...reminiscent of Charlie Wilson or the other brother Wilson from The Gap Band. It made me sad for a moment because I recently found out that an old friend of mine, Mr. Hubey Heard, former keyboard player for the Gap Band and recent protege of Billy Preston, was murdered while visiting his hometown in Ohio and trying to break up a fight. Shot and killed he was. What a waste. Hubey was extremely talented. An African-American man who grew up in Ohio and playing the piano in church. He was so talented he received a scholarship to the Ohio Conservatory of Music, then went on to tour with a myriad of musical artists throughout the 70's and 80's. He had his bouts with drugs and alcohol, like many people do, but Hubey was something special. I met him in the late 80's at our church. He was our Minister of Music and I was a lead singer in the choir, as well as the MC in church on Sundays. He could break out in a tune by Bach or Brahms, then get funky R & B on you, then slip into something like a Cuban "son" song, then on to The Beatles. So, so, very talented. His smile would light up a darkened room. As one of the lead singers in church, I was always asked to sing at weddings, receptions, and funerals. Hubey always accompanied me on the piano or the organ. It never took him long to learn a tune. I could hum a few bars and he'd be on it! I hadn't seen him in several years when I heard the news this November. I'm told Bishop Jones announced Hubey's death at the end of service one Sunday. I hope it was a quick and painless death. He wasn't perfect, and we didn't always get along, but I have such fond memories of him. Hubey - you will not be forgotten. I like to follow the career of Jamie Foxx because he, like Hubey, grew up playing piano in church, then received a scholarship to conservatory. He was an excellent choice for the new movie "Ray". I've seen Mr. Foxx do riffs on the piano just like Hubey used to. I enjoy the company of talented folks. Especially talented AND intelligent folks. Now that's a rare combo, but when they cross your path, they are instantly recognizable. Feels good for my second blog entry. Oh, say a prayer for my twin sister, she had surgery on Monday. I'll tell you about it later. Until next time.
- posted by Suzanne @ 9:31 PM 0 comments
12-07-04 First Time Out
Hello world. Well, my old friend Anne Hefley, unknowingly, has inspired me to learn about blogging. What a wonderful new world this is. Actually, her blog inspired me to share this idea with my friend Mernie, who is a dedicated journal writer. I suggested to Mernie today that she should take up blogging. I promised to send her links on how to do this and was so intrigued that I started it myself. Get ready world......I sometimes have much to say on a wide variety of topics. For starters, you should know I am a mom. Some call me a "Supermom" because I have four children (ALL BOYS) and I have to drive them around to three different schools everyday and spend countless hours being their taxi driver to numerous athletic practices and games, birthday parties, playdates, etc. I spend at minimum three hours a day driving on behalf of my children. Some of you may puke at the thought. I may scare you into abstinence by the time you're through reading my entries. Ever heard of "Scared Straight"? Look it up. Your visits here may be likened to at-risk kids being taken on a field trip to a federal prison to "scare them straight". Give them an insider's view of the horrors that dwell inside. That's what reading this will be like on some days, although this is not my intent. Don't get it twisted....I love my children, I'm a dedicated mother, I would never send them "back" if I had the chance.......But when you get to know me better, and learn of my struggles, you will understand. And know this: my struggles are not so different from many women across the country who have "retired" from their careers and now make raising their children their primary purpose in life.
Signing off, as we are 8 minutes overdue to a birthday celebration for my son's best friend Mel.
- posted by Suzanne @ 5:57 PM 0 comments
