Phenomenal Woman

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I’m telling lies.
I say,
It’s in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It’s the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can’t touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can’t see.
I say,
It’s in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I’m a woman

Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Now you understand
Just why my head’s not bowed.
I don’t shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It’s in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
‘Cause I’m a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That’s me.

Maya Angelou

Phenomenal Woman

Eliminate Student Metrocards? Can we say truancy?

Albany is continuing to fail New York City as a whole.

I cannot believe the idea of eliminating free and reduced fair metrocards for students’ is even on the table.  The fair just went up early this fall, and now the discussion of eliminating metrocards for students is on the table. Unbelievable. It is now $5.50 for a round  trip metrocard.  That means two destinations and two destinations only.  The idea of eliminating these cards is a problem on multiple levels.

Firstly, for families that have more than one child, that is a hefty additional bill to come out of their discretionary income. It is an estimated $1,500 annual expense per child. I do not even want to think about the expenses for a family of multiple children. New York City is already an extraordinarily expensive city to live in.  The cost of living continues to rise while our salaries do not.  This is a heavy financial burden. Secondly, what will students/families do when they cannot foot that Metrocard bill?  Will they walk to school? Jump the turnstiles? Stay home? There will be a significant increase in  truancy as well as turnstile hoppers.  To risk having a criminal record to make it to school on time is ludicrous. One article I read said that we are the only state that funds their students way to school.  That may be so, but we are also one of the most expensive cities to live in, with fewer and fewer local schools.  The school system is changing drastically with the proliferation of charter schools across the five boroughs.  Gone are the days where you walked a few blocks to attend the local school in your zip code.  Thirdly? Students will LOSE their metrocards, as well as risk having them stolen.  This is a sad reality. The frustration that parents and students will have to face because of theft and loss will spike the metrocard expense even higher.

I am completely in awe of this possible change.  The main vote occurs tomorrow.  I am completely disgusted with the MTA.  First rate increases, then service cuts and now the possible loss of student metrocards.  Who is our city really trying to benefit here?  It is a sad day to live in NY.

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Dyed & Fried- Yaki Delight

Am I really the only one who is starting to truly despise hair weaves? Or better yet women who act like they cannot live without one. Boy these Korean beauty supply store owners are making money off of black people! Now I have rocked weaves in the past and yea I looked cute. But, they pull your edges out, they make you tap your head like a mad person. And I was not a habitual hair weave wearer. I switched it up from perm to braids to weave to whatever. But now I am natural, well I am locking my hair actually. I have friends whom hair I have never seen without a weave that I have known for several years. I have friends who cannot go outside without a wig or weave in their hair. I have a cousin who is locking her hair but wears a wig everyday because she doesnt want to experience the “ugly phase”. But my thing is oh, so one magical day your going to pull off your wig and you’ll have dreads down to your shoulder? All I can say is ‘loser.’ Black women embrace some of the same qualities we criticize men for desiring. A bit hypocritical to me. As a recent college grad maybe I will go open a beauty supply shop and watch the premium yaki fall off the shelves just as fast as hair dye and skin lightening creams…

tell me what you think.

There is something troubling about this…

I think that there is definitely something troubling about calling the interbreeding of African bees with European honey bees as “africanizing”. Here’s the article

The terminology we use to describe things in my opinion really shows underlying biases, and feelings about issues. Now if these bees were from Brazil I would hardly think we’d call it “Brazilianizing” We may perhaps say Brazilian bees, but that would probably be the most as far as technical terms are concerned. What further confirmed my opinions about the underlying bias was the fact that these African bees are associated with overaggressive behavior, kind of the same way Black people are.

Although Africanized bees look like European honey bees, they tend to get irritated faster, respond with more firepower and stay mad longer than other bees, said Kirk Visscher, a professor at the University of California at Riverside, who has studied Africanized bees since 1985.

Their stings aren’t more powerful than other bees but they are more aggressive and swarm more often.

It’s kind of the concept that once you’re Black we have to contain you. Further in the article, they did note that all the existing hives have now been destroyed. I guess I am being a little extreme here. Although I am not denying the need or the seriousness of these bees I just think referring to them as Africanized is problematic. Am I alone on this one?