strong black woman

Does Kathy Griffith really think titling her standup comedy show "Strong Black Woman" has nothing to do with race? I think Ann duCille puts it best in "The Occult of True Black Womanhood":

"Within and around the modern academy [substitute popular media], racial and gender alterity has become a hot commodity that has claimed black women as its principal signifier. [...] Why are they [read white people] so interested in me and people who look like me (metaphorically speaking)?"

Good question, Ann, good question!

in memory of

Katherine Dunham, one of the most exquisite and talented sista divas to grace this earth passed away last night. Her presence and contributions to the arts will not be forgotten.

NY Times piece
http://www.eslarp.uiuc.edu/kdunham/bio.htm

good things 2: low-carb monster energy

i love caffeine
i love taurine
i love ginseng
i love l-carnitine
go monster, go!

this little assanine cheer is inspired by my new "good thing": lo-carb monster energy drink with all the above ingredients and a really good taste. and only 10 calories per serving to boot (and there are only 2 servings per large can not 50). i don't mean to sound like an advertisement but as my final days of revision draw close, i need all the energy i can get. now while it ain't pimp juice (thank god), it does pack a really good nonalchoholic buzz and keeps me up in the wee hours of the night.

sexy chocolate

So I took a break last night and watched the finale of ANTM and Danielle won! (my second favorite after Nnenna got boring and got voted off). Danielle's was a well-deserved victory as the girl is stunning in a very unconventional way (even after the panel 'highly encouraged' her to have dental work, she retained a hint of her signature gap) and she has a body that won't quit! I liked her second runner up as well and thought she'd take the title since Ms Tyra couldn't stop harping on Danielle's country accent and pontificating about how a Top Model needs to be able to annunciate. And she's kinda right: Danielle really does sound country, not southern, COUNTRY. I think she's from Arkansas or one of those places where you find yourself squinting in an effort to understand the words behind the twang and you're satisfied if you just get the gist of it.

Yeh I know Top Model is fluff but I can't very well spend every waking minute thinking about violated maternity in Cane now can I?

revision marathon

Since turning in my grades at "current school of employment," which is soon to be "ex-school of employment," I've been on a diss revision marathon. I'm not even sure how many hours a day I'm clocking in my attempts to make this document defensible. But I do know that television's off, NPR's on (most of the time, though I do like to listen in to my favorite gossip Wendy Williams) and I'm been practically marooned at my apartment for almost a week, with the exception of a few trips to the gym and grocery store. It actually feels good to have uninterrupted time to focus on my work. I'm sorta beginning to like my project again. Go figure.

survival of the fittest

I love yoga!

There, I've said it. What's interesting to me is that I'm not that good at it (I'm not very flexible, can't stand on my head and I have a really hard time breathing through moves sometimes). Normally I don't stick to practicing things I'm not good at (like guitar). But I've been practicing yoga for the past six years. Granted I have had hiatuses (some brief, some extended) but for the most part yoga has been one of the few consistent things in my life for awhile.

On to the survival part ... When I get extremely busy (like this year of full-time teaching and diss writing), my workouts tend to fall off and after slipping into a depression that was even scary to me, I've recommitted myself to the gym at least 3X a week for yoga and/or cardio. The diss will be here when I return, and guess what, I might actually be able to work on it!

So far after the past 3 or 4 weeks of sticking to my commitment, I feel almost back to myself again. It really is amazing what giving your body some of the time it deserves can do. In the past, I've stuck with the gym because, face it, I'm too fabulous to get fat (don't get mad all you fatabulous girls out there, okay Mo'Nique). It's a personal preference. I just ain't ready to surrender to Lane Bryant no matter how cute the clothes are. But these days, I'm more concerned with the mental and emotional benefits of working out. It might sound corny and new-agey but doing yoga has helped me cope with grad school, deaths and countless other emotionally taxing dilemmas I've been through on the journey to sistadoctahood. There's no reason it won't get me through this last hoop. I may even be able to stand on my head when it's all over!