Confession Tuesday: Operating on CP Time

So it's Wednesday and I'm posting my Confession Tuesday. Hey, work with me. I'm on CP time but I'm writing and getting things done so today, this works for me. My confession? I resist making to-do lists. They intimidate me. They are glaring records of all the things I need to get done, things I fear I won't get done, or things I will do poorly or I'm incapable of doing.

Well, call me brave today. I writing a list so you all know what I'm behind on, what I fear and most importantly so you can cheer me on. Yep, I need encouragement people, and one thing I don't fear is asking for help.

So here's a short list (hey, gotta start small):

• Spend who knows how much time online getting cozy with MARVIN(this is Michigan's online unemployment site. I've forgotten what the acronym stands for).
• Follow up with folks at the school and school district who have said they are serious about addressing students' achievement gaps but all I've seen is posturing. You all know my thoughts on what folks say versus what they do. Ha, and this coming from a woman who just admitted why she hates writing to-do lists and is behind on tasks. I'm a hot mess. I digress. These things are bullet points, right?
• Go to the gym to attempt to arrest the rapid expansion of my rear. What happened to that firm, round attractive bump? Oh, that's right, that heyday was in my 20s, maybe a few glory days in my 30s? And I'm now....
• Pack up books to donate. The only real spoiler for my guy to become irritated is when he looks too long at my mountains of books that in all fairness are books I'm not going to read. Painters and carpenters are coming in a few days so I have to move stuff out.(argggggggggggg)
• Edit and publish a few pieces for BES and Color Online.
• Read. How long have I been nursing Ash? Lovely, lovely book.
  
• Write. Did I just write that? I've got nerve. When is the last time I've written something? I'm due. Enough said.
  

Little Lov'n Monday

Little Lov'n Monday is a day we celebrate the work of fellow bloggers. Between now and Wednesday, post a link to an article, contest, interview, poem- anything you think deserves a little lov'n. Leave a link and be entered in LLM Giveaway. Deadline is September 30th. I'll leave this open to readers outside of the US and Canada, but instead of shipping a book, I'll email you a gift card. It's too costly for me to ship beyond Canada. On the fourth Saturday of each month, I'll announce a winner and will provide a list of books the winner may choose from.

Commit to visiting 5 blogs and leaving comments. If you do that, let us know. You might not care about winning a book, but I'm thinking you're a cool person who cares. Tell us that you shared some love. Thanks.

Check out these links:
VOCES: The Personal is Political at Literanista
Zimbabwean poets at Poefrika
Lavanderia: A Mixed Load of Women, Wash and Word at La Bloga

worducopia: C.O.R.A. Diversity Roll Call: Blogs

Ali is hosting this week at Worducopia. Please participate, add your link and check out the others.

1)Write a post highlighting one or more bloggers who are extremely different from you in some way. For example, think about blogger(s) who:
a. Identify with another race and/or ethnicity, religion, cultural background, age, etc. from you
b. Live the farthest from you
c. Have entirely different tastes in books from you (but you love their blog anyway)

If you can't think of any, go exploring and find some! Or . . .

2) Write a "Personals Ad" post to find bloggers who are outside your norm. Mine might read:

MWF (married white female) homeschool mom from a Pacific Northwest U.S. city seeks bloggers who enjoy literary (but not too literary) fiction, long walks on the beach, music, and will make me laugh.

Then other participants can recommend bloggers (including themselves, of course) who come from a different demographic and have similar interests.

3)Another option: If you consider yourself to be in the minority in some way in the blogosphere, write about that experience and/or highlight favorite bloggers who fit into that same subgroup. Interpretation of this is up to you—-be creative! If we look hard enough, we're probably all different-from-the-norm in one way or another.

Tuesday Confession: Living In the Presence of a Star

It's Tuesday, Confession Tuesday. Today, I don't want to vent; I want to medicate. I want to go back to being the weekend warrior. Parenting a teenager, full-time no less, is purgatory on Earth. Really, couldn't I get, I don't know, 500 Hail Marys instead of the incessant chatter, sulking and "Yes, Mother?" Maude, please can we rewind and renegotiate my penance?

Overly dramatic? Tell you what, you move in and if you're not reacting similarly in a week, let's make the substitution permanent, and I'll live your life. Okay, it's not that bad but now I fully appreciate why mothers hide in malls, lunches with girlfriends and work.

Today my DQ was actually in a good mood (until I asked her to break away from her group and go to the store). She spent the majority of her free time with her clique and after she graced me with her presence for dinner, she provided me a little entertainment: her impromptu dance performance, a hodgepodge of "Flash Dance" and "Fame," moves. The former movie she swears she's never seen. She said she obviously channeled the moves which confirms her destiny is to be a star. If only she had been born to different parents who truly supported her dreams ((close-up, sigh)) she would have been discovered by now.

She's the tortured, hidden talent and I'm the middle-aged, weary mom determined to be the better mom, resisting the urge to pull on her mommy sweats and power walk to the downtown Starbucks to nurse the over-priced coffee she doesn't even enjoy. ((hand to forehead))

Until our next episode, I sit here comforted by the soft sound of keystrokes, knowing you my dear friends, do understand me. Next week, please send out good vibes that I get 500 Hail Marys instead.

Color Online's Community HHM Recommended Reading List

Color Online's Community HHM Recommended Reading List
Hispanic Heritage Month runs Sept. 15th-Oct. 15. To celebrate, Doret has provided the following recommended YA list. But this list is short, we want your input. Tell us your favorite YA Latino/a titles. How many of these have you read? Would love to have links to reviews. And let's add non-fiction. Feel free to ask questions or leave comments about the titles listed.

Little Lov'n Monday

Little Lov'n Monday is a day we celebrate the work of fellow bloggers. Between now and Wednesday, post a link to an article, contest, interview, poem- anything you think deserves a little lov'n. Leave a link and be entered in LLM Giveaway. Deadline is September 23th. I'll leave this open to readers outside of the US and Canada, but instead of shipping a book, I'll email you a gift card. It's too costly for me to ship beyond Canada. On the fourth Saturday of each month, I'll announce a winner and will provide a list of books the winner may choose from.

Commit to visiting 5 blogs and leaving comments. If you do that, let us know. You might not care about winning a book, but I'm thinking you're a cool person who cares. Tell us that you shared some love. Thanks.

Check out these links:
Jen Robinson's Children's Literacy Round-Up
Posting Latino/a at Crazy Quilts
Dwelling in Possibility (new blogger) show some love
Tribute to Ronald Takaki at Angry Asian Man
Short Story Contest details at Fledgling
Debating Black Books at Read Roger
You Know You Might Be A Book Blogger if at A Striped Armchair
Yoji Yamaguchi's Face of a Stranger at Asian American Lit Fans

Color Online: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ARI!!!!!

Color Online: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ARI!!!!! Ari, you are an amazing young woman. You are a leader, a doer; you set goals and boldly go after them. You are political, passionate. Girl, you're just plain on fire! I admire your drive to set the world right. Let it be known that if Ari thinks something is wrong, she's going to say something aboutit and then she's going to take action.

Leave well wishes for Ari at Color Online.

BBAW: How I Read (meme)

BBAW is a week-long celebration of book bloggers. Today's assignment was to complete a meme describing our reading habits. Here are my responses:

Do you snack while you read? If so, favorite reading snack? No

Do you tend to mark your books as you read, or does the idea of writing in books horrify you?
Sometimes I mark using a pencil and it no longer bothers me to mark a book. Makes it more personal. I feel more connected to the work. Weird, I know.

How do you keep your place while reading a book? Bookmark? Dog-ears?Laying the book flat open?
Bookmarks. My one craft hobby is bookmark making.

Fiction, Non-fiction, or both?
Love both. Sorely neglect non-fiction.

Hard copy or audiobooks?
Prefer hard copy. Growing fondness for audio.

Are you a person who tends to read to the end of chapters, or are youable to put a book down at any point?
I stop whenever I feel like breaking. Doesn't matter where.

If you come across an unfamiliar word, do you stop to look it up right away?
I normally don't stop unless I think the reference is critical or not knowing nags me to the point I have to know.

What are you currently reading?
I am pathetically behind reading Ash by Malinda Lo. I'm not big on fantasy but I love Malinda's writing and approach to this familiar tale. She's really used a classic as a jumping point and moved it forward in a fresh engaging way.

Also reading Teenage Underground. Brought home from our library. My daughter read it and asked me to so I am. She wants to discuss it. Well, that's all the reason I need to read it.

What is the last book you bought?
Can't remember. I get a lot on trade and I love using the library. I usually reserve my book buying for poetry or gifts.

Are you the type of person that only reads one book at a time or can you read more than one at a time?
I enjoy reading more than one at a time and at other times a book demands my full attention.

Do you have a favorite time of day and/or place to read?
Nope. Anytime, anywhere.

Do you prefer series books or stand alone books?
I prefer stand alone but I have enjoyed a few series notably, Octavia E. Butler's Parable books and looking forward to completing Justine Larbalestier's Magic series.

Is there a specific book or author that you find yourself recommending over and over?
Yes: Jacqueline Woodson, Zetta Elliott, Octavia E. Butler, Neesha Meminger and Kekla Magoon.

How do you organize your books? (By genre, title, author’s last name, etc.?)
Organization is not one of my strengths. I use a method that makes sense only to me (My guy scratches his head which suggests my logic is suspect). I group all poetry together (takes a bookcase of its own), then reference books (I have a nice collection of literary reference books, many of these are volumes from huge series. Working in reference publishing has its perks), and last everything else.

If you're unfamiliar with BBAW go here.

Little Lov'n Monday

Little Lov'n Monday is a day we celebrate the work of fellow bloggers. Between now and Wednesday, post a link to an article, contest, interview, poem- anything you think deserves a little lov'n. Leave a link and be entered in LLM Giveaway. Deadline is September 16th. I'll leave this open to readers outside of the US and Canada, but instead of shipping a book, I'll email you a gift card. It's too costly for me to ship beyond Canada. On the fourth Saturday of each month, I'll announce a winner and will provide a list of books the winner may choose from.

Commit to visiting 5 blogs and leaving comments. If you do that, let us know. You might not care about winning a book, but I'm thinking you're a cool person who cares. Tell us that you shared some love. Thanks.

Check out these links:
Framing Kayane West in the larger....Diary of an Anxious Black Woman
Multicultural list of children's book at SLJ
Caster Semenya. Great article at Womanist Musings
Review of Between XX and XY by Gerald N. Callahan at Feminist Review

Confession Tuesday

Okay, it's Tuesday. It's late. And I'm whipped. The first day of high school wore me out! First, the bus was really early and the kidlet had to run to catch it. Of course, once I returned home (I was walking her to end of our complex drive), I was on the phone calling the transportation department. My guy (the rational, calm one) told me to take a minute to breathe and to promise him I wouldn't go sistagirl on the unfortunate soul who answered the call. I rolled my eyes at him and when the clerk answered, in my calm, measured voice, I expressed my concern about the time of the pickup. Afterall, I had called more than a week ago to be sure I knew what time my teen was suppose to be at the stop.

After school, I asked for a complete recap of her day, I added all her teachers' contact information to my new email account("Honey, so their mail won't get buried in your bottomless pit of an email account"). Earlier, I spoke with the assistant principal again about working with a newly formed group to help minority students close their achievement gaps.

I confess I was not this involved with my oldest. I approached her schooling the same way my parents did with us: at a distance with firm expectations. And yes, I thought I had done my parental duties. I realize this is awful to admit but it's the truth. From my own experience, I know that approach wasn't enough, but I hadn't learned and managed to break old ideas and habits.

With this kidlet, I'm trying to be a better parent. This time I do know better so I have to step up. But, this is work. Of course, my guy says part of my exhaustion is my resistance to change. Just because I know what to do, know that's it's better, doesn't make it easy and frankly not all that desirable.

Today the president asked our kids to take responsibility, to try harder, not to let themselves down. Well, if we can expect this from our children, I have no excuse. Yes, we can POTUS! (couldn't resist)

BBAW: Than you for your support and vote

Color Online has been short-listed for Most Altruistic Blog. Please vote us.
Congratulations to all nominees. It is an honor to be recognized.

Little Lov'n Monday

Little Lov'n Monday is a day we celebrate the work of fellow bloggers. Between now and Wednesday, post a link to an article, contest, interview, poem- anything you think deserves a little lov'n. Leave a link and be entered in LLM Giveaway. Deadline is September 4th. I'll leave this open to readers outside of the US and Canada, but instead of shipping a book, I'll email you a gift card. It's too costly for me to ship beyond Canada. On the fourth Saturday of each month, I'll announce a winner and will provide a list of books the winner may choose from.

Commit to visiting 5 blogs and leaving comments. If you do that, let us know. You might not care about winning a book, but I'm thinking you're a cool person who cares. Tell us that you shared some love. Thanks.

Check out these links:

Celebration of destruction: of a dress at New Austin

Something Like An Open Letter to Children Publishers at Fledgling
Happy Blogoversary at The Bottom of Heaven
Mayra Santos-Febres at La Bloga

Going Back To High School: Confession Tuesday

It's Tuesday, late Tuesday but given the day I've had this is as good as it's going to get. Not only have I had to accept the joy of living through teendom- a third time, but it seems I'm returning to high school. Apparently, my young Drama Queen in-training is determined to be Drama Queen Supreme and school hasn't even started. What happened? Let's start with meeting with her counselor to get her classes. She hates math but insists on taking geometry when she complained the entire last year about algebra. Her counselor and I suggested taking a refresher, if it's too easy, she can drop it and be enrolled in geometry. Then DQ insists on taking AP English. This is the same child who rolls her eyes when I suggest reading something for the sake of reading and to top everything off, she refuses to join student council after I told her she can't run for President when she hasn't even been involved, "You're a freshman." She complained ad infinitum about swimming (you know we can't get our hair wet), a two-week stint during the twelve week course. Despite all that, we left school without incident.

Four hours later, I get call from her dad complaining that his child is too bright to be in an algebra refresher. "She did very well." Yes, she finished fine, but she complained the whole time and we don't know if the course she took is as challenging as the courses in this district. I don't know if it's ego or if Daddy's girl was manipulating him or both. Can we try this for ten days? If she's sailing, she moves on. After assuring him that I will have the counselor call him, that he will be sent copies of every test, progress report and any diary entry of importance, he calmed down.

And my life? Well, not sure when I actually stop working. Seems they haven't figured that out. Today is my sweetie's birthday, and I couldn't find a diabetic mix to make him a cake. I'm on meds for my wicked sinus blues, and let's not talk about how sorely I need to get back to blogging regularly here, my personal space while maintaining a daily schedule at Color Online.

And Ms. Thang thinks she has drama? Seriously?!

For more confessions, check out January at Poet Mom.