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Wednesday, January 4, 2012
Farewell to a Blog - Going Forward IRL
So here we are and I find myself at a huge crossroad and the direction I need to take is crystal clear. Although I have complete clarity as to where I am heading, the realization is bitter sweet. I have a couple of great opportunities ahead of me and when I ponder whether I should throw myself full throttle into these opportunities or try to maintain my blogging efforts, blogging seems to pale in comparison. It's not that I don't like blogging anymore, it's simply that my interests have changed - drastically. I supposed this has been the case for quite some time, but I was in denial about it. I made a miserable attempt to revive this blog and even thought if I shifted my interest to a new topic (hence my other blog) that I might regain my passion for blogging.
I will leave this blog static for a time as I go through the many posts to see what I'd like to keep and dispose of. One day I'd like to pass this little piece of me on to my boys when then can appreciate it.
Words cannot adequately express my gratitude that others would find my crazy writings worth a second glance, but I thank you, Thank You for the times that you stopped by.
Farewell Quiskaeya, farewell.
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Trying to Get My Blogging Groove Back
Ana Gazawi
Busy?
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Sure, I could blame it on being extra busy - which I am - but then when am I ever not extra busy. That's the story of my life. Single mom. Never enough time. Always playing catch up. What's new... Therefore, using busy-ness as my excuse just seems like a cop-out.
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Fodder? Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Life? Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
So? Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
What is the cause of my deficiency in blogging, asks you? Well...hmmm...I just seemed to have experienced a distinct lack of interest in it over my hiatus. Maybe, it was due to a bit of writer's block - which seems like a paradox since I never run out of stuff to write about. Case in point: my obnoxiously long run-on sentences. Hehehe ;-)
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Sorry. Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi Ana Gazawi
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
A Father's Tribute to His Transracially Adopted Daughter
Did you know that November is Adoption month? No? Yes, my lovely readers, it is. In light of that, this month I will showcase various tidbits from around the web that speak on adoption. I'm sure many of you have seen the Sesame Street video below - it's gone viral since its release. Who can blame it for becoming an instant sensation? The video's adorable character and catchy tune are simply irresistible. Beyond that, the message it conveys certainly is one that will resonates loudly with girls of color, since many of them struggle with the image of their hair.
While I find the video adorable in all it's bouncy, bubbly glory, I thirsted to know what prompted Sesame Street to create a video such as this - and now. Was it for viewership and to grapple at a broader audience? I'll admit the producers of Sesame Street have done a decent job at incorporating diversity in a good portion of their programming. However, even they have missed opportunities at times to be more inclusive of diversity. Therefore, I wondered if the timing of this video was intentional.
As it would happen, my investigation lead me to discover some information I hadn't expected to find. The creator of this video, Joey Mazzarino, is the head writer at Sesame Street. He and his wife, a Caucasian couple, adopted a beautiful Ethiopian girl.
In his own words, Mazzarino describes what inspired him to write the song. "She (his daughter) wanted to have long blond hair and straight hair, and she wanted to be able to bounce it around,"
Mazzarino began to worry that his daughter might be battling with the dynamics of being in a transracial adoption. However, he soon discovered that hair challenges & pressures are very deeply rooted in black community. In my opinion, I think Mazzarino should be commended for his work. However, I realize that controversy abounded as a result of this video. It appears that some people in the black community were offended that the Muppet's hair changed texture and had length in some of the scenes, thereby not resembling black hair in their opinion. They feel the message is conflicting in that it encourages black girls to love their hair, yet the Muppet sports hairstyles that would require them to straighten or purchase synthetic hair in order to have those styles.
While I find the video adorable in all it's bouncy, bubbly glory, I thirsted to know what prompted Sesame Street to create a video such as this - and now. Was it for viewership and to grapple at a broader audience? I'll admit the producers of Sesame Street have done a decent job at incorporating diversity in a good portion of their programming. However, even they have missed opportunities at times to be more inclusive of diversity. Therefore, I wondered if the timing of this video was intentional.
As it would happen, my investigation lead me to discover some information I hadn't expected to find. The creator of this video, Joey Mazzarino, is the head writer at Sesame Street. He and his wife, a Caucasian couple, adopted a beautiful Ethiopian girl.
In his own words, Mazzarino describes what inspired him to write the song. "She (his daughter) wanted to have long blond hair and straight hair, and she wanted to be able to bounce it around,"
Mazzarino began to worry that his daughter might be battling with the dynamics of being in a transracial adoption. However, he soon discovered that hair challenges & pressures are very deeply rooted in black community. In my opinion, I think Mazzarino should be commended for his work. However, I realize that controversy abounded as a result of this video. It appears that some people in the black community were offended that the Muppet's hair changed texture and had length in some of the scenes, thereby not resembling black hair in their opinion. They feel the message is conflicting in that it encourages black girls to love their hair, yet the Muppet sports hairstyles that would require them to straighten or purchase synthetic hair in order to have those styles.
What say you, my lovelies? What are your thoughts? Thumps up or Thumps Down?
Tuesday, November 9, 2010
The Importance of Your Child's Name
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| ::sniffles:: 19 weeks prego w/ my 2nd born |
Nonetheless, there is one aspect of preparing for baby that might be the most daunting of all and that's naming the baby. Mom has her ideas and Dad has his. Then there are the family members and in-laws that often want to chime in. Should the child's name pay homage to a parent, grandparent or dear friend?
The name game can take on an added facet when the couple is multicultural or even interracial. Should the name honor both heritages? Will there be a language or cultural barrier when non-English speaking family members try to embrace the name? These are valid concerns to think about and I know families confronted with this challenge. My own family dealt with this.
| An aerial view of my super preggo 7mth belly. lol |
In a recent article on Madame Noire, the editor tackled the question of whether black parents are wrongly attacked for choosing ethnic names. In all honesty, some of the ethnic, reclaim our African roots, names some black parents choose for their children merit a raised eyebrow. I realize the black empowerment movement of the 60s that lead to many black parents opting for more Afro-centric names, was an effort to shed "slave" connotations and regain ethnic pride. I get all that. However, personally I'm not on that bandwagon that feels we need to go back to Africa to gain pride and purpose. Quite frankly, Africans aren't thinking about us and rightfully so. It's high time blacks in the western hemisphere started concentrating on what we have on this side of the globe and work harder to build on that. ::stepping off soapbox and setting down mic::
Coming back around from that tangent I went on, when I encounter names like Bacardi for a boy or Taquila for a girl, I'm left scratching my head. What was this black parent thinking when they named their child? Was the child named in remembrance of a night of too much alcohol and wild times? ::shakes head and chuckles::
I remember reading an article about baby names shortly after President Obama took office. There was a surge in black parents naming their children Barack. Was it whimiscal thinking to believe that if President Obama could achieve the most prestigious position in the land with his name, that all children will have the same success? I really don't know...
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| I'm seeing future surgeons or world leaders right here! |
Here a list of some of the names that potentially receive discriminate responses by potential employers:
Girls: Aisha, Keisha, Tamika, Lakisha, Tanisha, Latoya, Kenya, Latonya and Ebony
Boy: Rasheed, Tremayne, Kareem, Darnell, Tyrone, Hakim, Jamal, Leroy, Jermaine
Here's a list of some of the names that receive the highest responses:
Girls: Emily, Anne, Jill, Allison, Laurie, Sarah, Meredith, Carrie, Kristen,
Boys: Todd, Neil, Geoffrey, Brett, Brendan, Greg, Matthew, Jay, Brad
I don't know if my kids' names will be a stumbling block or a door opener to opportunities for them. In my mind's eye I see my kids doing great things when they're adults. I'm claiming it for them and I try my best to nurture a successful attitude in them. But truly at the end of the day, regardless of their names, I just want them to be happy confident, happy individual, with good values.
So what say you, my lovelies? What inspired you to name your child his/her name? Did you think about how it could impact them in life?
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
Hair Evolution NOT Hair Revolution
Natural Hair Affirmation: It's interesting that to keep my hair the same texture that it grows out of my head is looked at as revolutionary ~ Tracie Thoms
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| The beginning of my loc journey. Look at my 2ndborn he was 1 mth. Little chunker! |
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| A year and a half later my locs were getting long. |
I'm all about simple and worry-free hairstyles since I hate to fuss with my hair. Natural hair has afforded me a certain level of freedom that permed hair didn't. I remember in the early years of going natural some of the crazy reactions I received from some friends & family. Oh boy!
Why did you cut off your hair? You have such naturally long hair!
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| My final loc pic. I cut them off in July. I think I'll try sisterlocs. |
Have you become a rastafarian? (These types of questions came when I started loc-ing my hair)
I can laugh about it now because I've grown very comfortable with my natural hair. I remember a time when I would walk into a room with black women and my hair would seem to say to them "I'm a militant black woman!". I felt as though I had joined the black panthers of natural hair. It's crazy the hair wars in our community. Black women go natural for different reasons. For some it's a sign of wanting to go against the status-quo (the hair revolutionist); for other women it's because of bad experiences with perming and still others go natural because it's becoming a trendy thing to do. However, I feel the vast majority of women who go natural do so for the simplicity and the ease of managing natural hair.
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| I had braids over the summer. It was a nice change. |
Seriously, I could never go back to permed hair - ever. I realize natural hair isn't for every black woman. But in my opinion natural hair really isn't that deep, so I'm not sure why all the crazy reactions to it. You do you and I'll do me, is the way I see it. It's that simple. And as for me, I fully intend to keep on being a naturalista.
What is it that keeps black women going at each other about their hair? Is the media to blame or do we perpetuate this war among ourselves? What say you, my lovelies?
Tuesday, November 2, 2010
Facebook & Kids
I was reading an article on Reuter.com that asked should parents friend their kids on facebook. Ummm yeah! It amazes me that anyone would even question this. Some of the parents in the article actually had uncertain feelings about invading their children's privacy. I'm probably old-fashioned in my thinking, but I think that children should be given limited (very limited) privacy rights when they are young that increase as they show themselves to be responsible and mature.
Last year my 9yo asked me to open a facebook account for him. He was 8 at the time and I couldn't fathom why an 8 yo should be on facebook. Later, I found out some of his classmates had facebook accounts and this is why he was asking for one. This year his dad opened an account for him, much to my chagrin. While I still think that he's too young to have an account, it's worked out well. Why? Firstly, I am on his friend list and secondly, because I am ALL OVER his activities on facebook. Yes, I repeat All.Over.His.Activities.
His account is linked to my cell phone so I'm notified of everything that happens on his account and I can hop onto it anytime I want to check on things. We do not allow him to accept or invite friends. Currently, only family friends or family members are allowed as friends and not all of them can see everything on his account (e.g. some can't see pictures). We already had an internet usage rule that we set up for him and facebook goes right into that plan. He can't use the computer without permission and the computer he uses has parental securities so he's only allowed to visit certain sites. So far everything has been good and he only uses facebook to play games with his FB friends.
I realize that the boundaries we have in place for my 9yo are very rigid and strict. However, even if my son was 13, 14 or an older teen, I would still put some restrictions on him. I am sure that when he's 16 he'll be more responsible than when he's 13, so I believe restrictions should fit the child's maturity level. Nonetheless, whether he is 17yo or 9 yo I would still expect to be a friend on his list. The bottom line is that children need guidance and age appropriate boundaries no matter how old they are. When it comes to internet predators, they've managed to find a way to prey on children of all ages. While my child might want to be on facebook for innocent reasons, it's unfortunate that predators can take lighthearted activities and turn them into an opportunity to violate our children.
Last year my 9yo asked me to open a facebook account for him. He was 8 at the time and I couldn't fathom why an 8 yo should be on facebook. Later, I found out some of his classmates had facebook accounts and this is why he was asking for one. This year his dad opened an account for him, much to my chagrin. While I still think that he's too young to have an account, it's worked out well. Why? Firstly, I am on his friend list and secondly, because I am ALL OVER his activities on facebook. Yes, I repeat All.Over.His.Activities.
His account is linked to my cell phone so I'm notified of everything that happens on his account and I can hop onto it anytime I want to check on things. We do not allow him to accept or invite friends. Currently, only family friends or family members are allowed as friends and not all of them can see everything on his account (e.g. some can't see pictures). We already had an internet usage rule that we set up for him and facebook goes right into that plan. He can't use the computer without permission and the computer he uses has parental securities so he's only allowed to visit certain sites. So far everything has been good and he only uses facebook to play games with his FB friends.
I realize that the boundaries we have in place for my 9yo are very rigid and strict. However, even if my son was 13, 14 or an older teen, I would still put some restrictions on him. I am sure that when he's 16 he'll be more responsible than when he's 13, so I believe restrictions should fit the child's maturity level. Nonetheless, whether he is 17yo or 9 yo I would still expect to be a friend on his list. The bottom line is that children need guidance and age appropriate boundaries no matter how old they are. When it comes to internet predators, they've managed to find a way to prey on children of all ages. While my child might want to be on facebook for innocent reasons, it's unfortunate that predators can take lighthearted activities and turn them into an opportunity to violate our children.
What are your thoughts on facebook and children or even children and the internet?
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