That's My Girl! That's the Homie!

Congratulations to the great Tayari Jones for her NAACP Image Award for best literature fiction for her novel American Marriage!

I had to watch it on the playback of Facebook Live, but when they called her name, I jumped up off the bed and hollered "YAY CELIE!! YAY CELIE!! That's my girl! That's the Homie! That's the Homie!!!"

('Bout scared my cats to death. They didn't know what the world was going on).

Look at her picture below. That must be the standard portrait that one takes with their award.

First, how FIRE is that dress?

Second, if I was her, I would have that picture blown WAY up and framed and placed on the wall. (I have been to her house a few times. You doggone best know I am going to offer my opinion of where it should go).

How awesome is this dress right here, though? WOW.

Man oh man. That is a nice dress. Fits her just right. GO GIRL! That's the homie right there!

I am so doggone proud of her. I fondly remember reading the rough drafts of American Marriage, and finishing up parts and dialing up her number. When she was slow to answer, I would hang up and repeatedly dial her up... until she answered.

"Celie, pick up this phone!" I'd squeal.
"I'm sorry, I was on the train, Nettie!" she would holler back.
"Oh, my bad, homie," I would say half apologetically. "But I'm sitting here saying 'This chick gonna answer this doggone phone!"

LOL

Fond memories!

And here we are now. Winning the awards. Get it girl! That's the homie!!

I can't wait for her to get back home to the ATL. She lives in my 'hood, so I am going to roll up on her. I'm gonna give her a hug and then ask to hold that award.

An award so well deserved!

Congratulations Tayari!!

Fried Chicken Friday Freestyles

So look at this and guess what it is...

That's the bottom of the skillet I use for frying chicken.

And it's a hot mess.

It did not get like that overnight. I bought that skillet during the summer of 1991 from the local Big Lots store. So it had to be cheap. That comes from years and years, some 28 years, of not scrubbing the bottom of the pan with a brillo pad.

It's too late to be thinking about that now. I would think an afternoon with a chisel and rag would make it look a little better. But mind you, I have been fastidious about keeping the inside of the skillet clean.

So much so that it's no longer non-stick. It is dayum near shiny. So I gotta be careful what I cook in it.

Alas, it's best for frying chicken. And I pulled a couple of old photos from my blog where I have caught the sizzle of the chicken in the pan.

That's some good chicken. I do not remember that batch of chicken, but I must tell you, by faith, that that was some GOOD chicken.

(That chicken had another 30 minutes to go in the skillet before it's is turned up).

 Now, I have had bought several skillets over the past 28 years, but this skillet has lasted all these years. I thought about tossing it, but I will keep it.

There is history there.

And it reminds me of the old skillets that my grandparents fried up chicken and pork chops in.

Now, I have a new skillet that I just LOVE. I bought it at the Target, not the Big Lots. I bought it, a small one and a large one, with my birthday monies. I have fried up some chicken in it, just once since I bought it on my birthday. I tend to sautee more veggies in it. I LOVED-IT it.

But I was washing it the other day and I noticed something.

Is the bottom of the skillet turning black?

I tried to scrub it clean with a brillo pad to no avail.

So will it crust up like the old one?

Only time will tell.

Wordless Wednesdays: Nephews in Awe of Auntie LadyLee's Bootleg TV Sets

Friday Freestyles

It is Friday.

I WISH it was Pay Day.

But alas, it isn't.

Terrorist Attack 2019. You know, it was some ol' craziness being half awake and half asleep last night, with my television still on, and there's some newsflash about a terrorist attack on a mosque.

My first thoughts:

AGAIN!?!?!

My second thought:

Maybe I'm just dreaming.

But I woke up, and I wasn't. I tell you what... they get thrown into a tizzy if there is some Islamic terrorist acts taking place, but when these white men get out here acting a fool, they get all confused. And you know what and who I mean by "they". It is getting old and tired. But it will keep going on. Until they start addressing "domestic terrorism" by the majority, this will continue to happen.

And we will continue to become desensitized to it.

But until we focus on all of the issues it will keep happening...

And the same moot response will continue: My thoughts and prayers are with the families.

We need more than thoughts and prayers. I'm just saying.

And that's my 2 cents.

College scandal. This was hilarious. Because you know this has been going on FOREVER. And I have a couple of thoughts about it.

#1. All I know is, I better not hear another word about affirmative action. Nope. Not another word.

#2. So... one spends $1,000,000 to get their beloved child into a specific college. How 'bout you just donate the money to the school? That's the legal way to do things. But no, gotta be different. Your child is so WHACK that you gotta buy their way into school. Some of the million dollars could have been spent on tutors and test prep programs. Not to mention private schools. Sigh.

#3. Here is what is up... I spend a million dollars on my kid to fraudulently get them into the school of their choice. And now you want to bring charges concerning it. Listen, if I am that rich, DO YOU THINK I'M GOING TO PRISON?

No.

And that is my prediction. No one will go to prison for this. A slap on the wrist... and back to the yacht.

Song of the Day: On this day, 33 years ago, the song "Your Smile" by Rene and Angela was #1 on the charts.



That is a FANTASTIC song. And I always thought she was singing about her man. No, she was singing about her grandmother.

How cool is that.

And that is it for my Friday Freestyles.

Have a great weekend! On purpose.

Two Tuesday Thoughts: The Cartoon Edition

Just two thoughts on a Tuesday...

1.  Boy oh boy.  This doggone daylight savings time got me all confused. I do not need a cup of coffee, though, as I have limited my coffee intake to one 8 ounce latte per week (if that). But this cartoon describes perfectly what I need, or better yet, what is required, to just get past losing an hour of sleep. Ugh.

2. I went to sleep around 10 pm last night, then woke up around 1:45 am. I was wide open awake, and did not go back to sleep until around 5:30 am.

So by the time I fell asleep, my phone alarm was sounding. I hate when that happens.

I think I'm just going to get up and work on some things when I wake up in the middle of the night. Like, crochet, or clean out some dresser drawers. Simple enough.

But the warmth of the bed feels so good.

And I just want to lay there and play on my phone.

This is not productive. It is not good.

A change is coming!

That's it for my TWO Tuesday thoughts! Glory!