Way back when, when my grandparents’ house was filled with visiting relatives, and I would be listening, there was never any talk about white people. And, as I’ve written before, until I was twelve, white people didn’t exist. They were not part of my world. I remember conversations, some heated, about the Bible, the trouble maker/ ne’er-do-well relative, crops, jackleg preachers…
Infandous is an archaic term that refers to something too wicked or abominable to be spoken of or mentioned. It is often used in a legal or moral context to describe actions or deeds that are considered beyond the accepted norms of decency. I think my relatives were intuitively engaging in this by not talking about white people in their homes. Why sully a safe space?
I’m sure they talked about white people because they worked for them, but they understood that some spaces must be off-limits….out-of-bounds for the evil they had to navigate. Sad that we have to relearn what they knew so that today we can navigate this dark time of blatant white supremacy.
Not so long ago women had to be strong. I mean muscular strong. Do you have any idea how heavy an iron teapot is? A ceramic crock? An iron kettle? They’re heavy, even when they’re empty. It took strength to swing an axe or to wash clothes using a washboard. What about grinding meat for sausage, souse, etc.? In the 1990s, I hosted a family reunion and I had a display of utensils, tools, etc. that my grandparents used. Pictured are a few of the items that I found in junk and antique stores. Who would want to go back to those days?
Prime–I am conflicted about canceling Prime. I do not want to continue to feed the ultra-rich with my pennies. However, yesterday, I went to a dollar store to buy a toenail clipper. I haven’t bought one in years and did not think that finding one at a dollar store would be a problem. However, at the dollar store, there was no toenail clipper sold except in a set with other things I did not need and would not use. So, I go to a nearby drugstore. There was a toenail clipper, the store brand, but no price on the package or the shelf. When the clipper rang up over five dollars, I told the clerk no thanks. Two stores–no toenail clipper. Next stop is the grocery store and I remembered to look for a toenail clipper. There is exactly one on the shelf and there is no price on the shelf or the package. $1.99 plus tax for a toenail clipper. So, instead of driving to three stores, I could have used Prime and be done with it. No wasted gas or time and no frustration. That is my dilemma.
I am watching “Cross” on Prime. You know what I like about it? The actors and actresses look like Black people…the ones I grew up with and see everyday. Not the mixed people that media has been hyping as the sole representation of Black people here in the United States. It’s refreshing to see the little girl and boy with kinky hair/braids, women with braids and tiny afros, males with bushy hair…and they are all melanated. Gorgeous!!! Kudos to whoever casted the show! And a Black man who is with a Black woman and they love each other…what a novelty. Not really except in the fantasy world of television.
Other than that…it’s just a standard cop show. An aside…never saw the movies with Morgan Freeman or Tyler Perry and I have not read any of the books by James Patterson. But if you have watched any of the Sherlock Holmes’s iterations, the shows based on Agatha Christie’s sleuths, Murdoch Mysteries, Midsomer Murders, etc., then there is nothing new in terms of plot. I will definitely watch Season 2!
Restaurants come and go. There is a restaurant that recently closed its location in my part of town. It had the best corn pudding. I shall miss it. The only location I know of that is still open is in a part of town where there is no parking. I have made corn pudding , but it just doesn’t taste the same. Anyway, the National Museum of African American History & Culture sent an email with a recipe for corn pudding. I think I will try again with that recipe. Check out the site–nmaahc@smithsonianonline.org
An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity. MLK
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