Homegirl Quel (kel) in Austin

Cheesey, but I have to share this...

I'm leaving work and it was raining. I'm listening to Corinne Bailey Rae's album, and "Butterfly" is playing. It's a really beautiful song...the opening lyrics make you instantly nostalgic and introspective (I'd load it for you to listen, but my PC is acting funky). Anyway, the rain's beating down and traffic is not moving at all and just as Corinne sings 'Would you live your life/Like a butterfly', I look out of my window to the left and there's a school bus beside me with a picture of a butterfly by the door. You know how school buses have little symbols to help the little kids know which bus to get on after school? Anyway. That's it. Y'all know I'm always looking for meaning and "signs" in little things, and although I'm not sure there was any meaning in that moment, it was pretty awesome at that moment...to hear and see 'butterfly' at the same time.

SO. Fun!

This is SO random, but I was inspired by Summer to post this.

http://www.myheritage.com

Corinne Bailey Rae

"...just like oil on my hands, Now i have come to understand, the way it is, It's not a secret anymore, 'cause we've been through that before, from tonight I know that you're the only one, I've been confused and in the dark, now I understand... "  --Like A Star

Lovely album. Take a listen to Like A Star.

I love Oprah, but...

Sometimes, I wish Oprah would let her guests get a word in edgewise. I watched her interview with Barack Obama. It was the most frustrating hour of my life. (overstatement, but still) I understood her excitement about him being there and everything. But DAYum, Woman! If you gone let anybody complete a thought, let it be Obama. Quit interjectin' all the dayum time.

Sweet Memories

I watched an episode of All of Us recently where little Bobby prank-called 911 and his dad took him to the police station to teach him a lesson about breaking the law. It took me back to when my parents turned me in.

I was 6 or 7 or however old you are in the second or third grade. We had gone to the grocery store and I stole a pack of Double Mint gum while we waited in line to check out. I couldn’t help it. I was so intrigued by the Double Mint twins in the commercials, being a twin myself. I saw it and I just took it. I could have gotten away with it too, but I couldn't wait to get home before I opened it. My folks heard the wrapper rustling in the back seat and I was found out. They turned the car right back around and took me back into the store first, where I had to return the gum to the manager and apologize. Then, off we went to jail.

My twin brother was bawling when we got there. He thought I was getting locked up for real. Sweet thing--he was clutching at his chest and kept repeating 'My heart hurt! My heart hurt!'. Looking back, I'm guessing he was mimicking Red Foxx from Sanford and Son...you know how he feigns a heart attack every time something bad happens? We loved Sanford and Son--watched it all the time.

Anyway, so my mom dad took me in and told the police I wanted to be a thief and I had to sit in this room (felt like an interrogation room at the time, but it was really just an empty office) for a long time by myself. I was told to think about what I had done. I was crying so hard, partly because I thought I was going to jail, but mostly because I knew I had broken one of the Ten Commandments and was about to get a right-hot azz wuppin'. When we got home, my mom showed me in The Holy Bible where it said 'Thou shalt not steal' and 'Children obey your parents' and 'He who spareth the rod hateth his son: but he that loveth him correcteth him betimes' and then proceeded to loveth the hell out’a me.

Good times.

Grey's Catchup

My friend is about to start watching Grey's Anatomy two seasons late. In case there are any others, I found this beautiful recap of season's 1 & 2. It's just six minutes long, and it's pretty awesome.

Note to Self: When traveling by air...

NOT a great idea to board the plane too early if you're flying before 6 AM.

You will fall asleep listening to your iPod and just when the sleep gets really good, the flight attendant will tap you awake and ask you to turn your iPod off and straighten your seat-back in preparation for take-off. Because you were just awaken from a dreamy, Zero 7 accompanied sleep, you will be disoriented. Your music will still be playing in your ears and you will stare at the flight attendant with a confused look on your face as you try to remember where you are, while blinking yourself awake. Just as the wide-eyed, raised eyebrow question mark expression on the flight attendant's face registers, you will remove your ear buds to her repeating her directions (prob'ly for the third time) loudly, slowly and deliberately, as if she is talking to a 3 year old or someone who does not speak English. You will quickly and clumsily comply. Seconds later you will be just a little bit pissed that you were just spoken to loudly, slowly and deliberately as if you were a 3 year old or someone who does not speak English. You will categorize this flight attendant --unfairly--as a byatch and you'll start a 3-hour flight with negative energy, which is against your religion.

Next time, be among the last to board and don't plug in the iPod or fall asleep until you're in the air.