A B-Cube on the MLK Memorial Dedication

Since we survived the earthquake on Tuesday, now all we need to do is hope that Hurricane Irene takes a sudden detour out to sea.  Folks from all over the country are in town to celebrate the dedication of the MLK Memorial and it would be nice if Mother Nature would give us a pass. 

Not that I am arguing with Mother Nature, but she's been cranky this summer.  Heatwaves throughout the month of July and crazy thunder storms for the past two weeks, and then of course, the Earthquake that our friends in California poo-poohed as small.  Well, yeah leave us and our 5.8 magnitude quake (and the 4.5 aftershock that I distinctly felt this morning around 1am) alone.  Just know that you will get NO SYMPATHY from us if ya'll get any snow this winter.

Anyway, back to the dedication info (and a few links in case you need them):

Build the Dream - This is the official site for the MLK National Memorial Foundation and it includes the official schedule of activities associated with the dedication this weekend (still taking donations for the remaining $5 million as well).

Some of the events posted on this site are ticketed events, but in keeping with the B-cube philosophy of promoting activites for the broke, busy woman on a budget, here are the freebies:

• See the memorial now!  It won't cost you anything to head over to the National Mall to catch a glimpse of the memorial before 10pm this evening when it closes for the official re-unveiling on Sunday.  I drove by earlier today (along Independence Ave) and it looks spectacular!
• Check out the free public expo at the Convention Center, which opened today and will be open through Sunday. 
• Free performance tomorrow at the Kennedy Center's Millenium Stage featuring Raheem DeVaughn
• Pre-Dedication Musical Tribute, the actual Dedication, and the Concert on the Mall, all taking place on Sunday, August 28 and all FREE

Or you could just skip all of the hooplah this weekend and check it out the memorial whenever...

EarthQUAKE

OK, so what does a Busy Black Woman do during an earthquake?

She sets down her laptop and runs out of the house barefoot to see if it is just her house rattling like a freight train, then wonders whether Harold Camping was right after all...

Then she calls her loved ones, beginning with the husband (who does not answer); the parents (who do, and report minor damage); the aunt (who stayed in bed through the whole thing); and the brother in law in NY (who called to check in on her and claims that he only heard car alarms going off).  She goes back outside to see more neighbors all standing around with the same puzzled look on their faces.  She goes back inside to survey the damage and finds a broken coffee mug on the kitchen floor.  Then she checks Twitter and Facebook to read the reactions.  On Twitter she learns that it was a 5.8 magnitude quake and that it was felt in NYC.  On Facebook, she sees that the nephew-in-law has checked in to make sure all is ok in DC.  Then she turns on the cable news and learns that the epicenter was in VA but the trembling was felt as far away as Illinois and Georgia.  Then the husband calls in to say that he is OK.  Then she discovers that cell phone service is still down, so she cannot call to check on the brothers or the rest of the NYC family.  She posts a few comments on Facebook, shares a laugh or two with a few friends from California, and thinks that she might go mix herself a drink.

But then it hits her--she is incredibly blessed because this could have been really, really bad.  She thinks about the earthquake that hit Japan earlier this year and how that nearly caused a nuclear meltdown.  She considers the catastrophic devastation wrought by the earthquake that hit Haiti.  She remembers the tsunami of a few years ago.

And she thinks about what she was doing at the very moment the earthquake hit...she was writing a post of complaints on the very topic of how discomforting it is for someone to remind her of how things could be worse.  Awkward.  Ironic.  Probably will not get posted any time soon, if at all.

She thinks about how she's been feeling sorry for herself lately, and how the sense of powerlessness is nothing compared to real powerlessness.  She expects that when she goes to church this Sunday (because you'd better believe she'll be somewhere thanking God on Sunday morning), there will be a sermon in all of this, and it will change her perspective.  Heck, she's not even going to wait for Sunday...

Thank the Lord!

A BBW Top Ten for Summer 2011

I'm back!  (Actually, I just took a short break from posting here...I needed to blow off a little steam at the Cafe blog last week).  And according to my calendar and the Facebook updates of my friends with children, summer is pretty much over.  Which kinda sucks...

And I know I am dating myself by mentioning this, but one of my favorite assignments from the first week of school was the summer recap essay: "What I Did During My Summer Vacation".  I also enjoyed writing book reports, but children's books read to the Baby Niece do not count...

Alas, there will not be a desk or locker with my name taped to it come September, but I thought it would be fun to write the Busy Black Woman's version of that same essay, presented here as a Top Ten List:

1. Walking through the Alumnae Arch - To everyone who does not know this, I LOVE visiting my alma mater, and this year, I went down for a meeting and had the opportunity to participate in the Reunion/Graduation activities.  No, I did not get a ticket to see Mrs. Obama as the commencement speaker (that would have been the cherry on top), but I did get to walk through the Alumnae Arch while carrying my class flag!  This was a very big deal because it was not even my Reunion year.  I also got to connect with a few of my classmates, and I got to see some sisters I had not seen in 17 years!  The downside was the unfortunate photo of my puffy, "ugly cry" face...I started bawling less than five feet away from the Arch and that is when someone snapped the photo.  But the best part about that day was standing on the opposite side of the Arch to greet the new alumnae-to-be as they came through!

Makes Me Wanna Holla

This is a public service announcement of sorts because of a recent incident that has me a bit rattled.  Busy people, please be careful out there!

This morning I discovered that someone had gone into one of our cars, rifled through the glove compartment and the arm rest, stolen the meter change and a cosmetic bag full of toiletries--all because I forgot to lock my door.  I last drove this car this past weekend from a quick trip to visit the New York relatives, and because we got back so late, the husband and I intended to unpack the remaining things the following morning.  Well, as good intentions go, we never got around to doing that and apparently, I forgot to activate the alarm.

I am kicking myself because this is something that I do a lot (leaving the car unlocked in front of the house).  But because I live in a quiet neighborhood with older neighbors who watch every move anyone makes, I never gave my occasional negligence a second thought.  Until now...

Just half an hour before I discovered this morning's jolt of reality, I had been reading in the paper about how an elderly man who was just walking his dog got stabbed by a couple of teenagers who were looking to rob him.  And this was just after the husband had shared a story he heard on the radio about a sociopath who killed several people and is now on death row. 

I am not going to ask what the world is coming to because this type of craziness is all around us.  No one is immune from crime.  I am angry about what happened to me because I know that I should have been more careful...but people also should not steal.  People should not be killed over dumb stuff.  I should not have to fear for my life or have to worry about crackhead thieves who pull on car handles in the middle of the night. 

So this is just a warning to urge you to pay attention to your surroundings.  Busy people are often distracted, which means that we miss things.  I have not exactly been too busy to remember to clear out my car, but I just didn't think about it, and I certainly did not realize that my car had been unlocked for several days.  So please just try to be more aware of the things that you might tend to forget...OK that didn't make sense the way I worded it and quite honestly, I cannot figure out how to re-word it except to emphasize again, be more observant!

(Please forgive me for rambling...)

A Lesson from Lucy

A few weeks ago I mentioned that I was compiling a list of facts for tweeting and if you are following me on Twitter, you have received several of them so far.  Much of this information falls under the category of random trivia that might be useful if one was a contestant on Jeopardy or maybe at a dinner party with a bunch of women's studies majors. 

You might have also noted that I have branded women from every background as Busy Black Women, which would have been quite a surprise to some if they were still living.  And until I get a cease and desist letter, there are a lot of women still among us, black or otherwise, who are also similarly designated.  So yes, Martha Stewart, Elizabeth Dole, Connie Chung, and Bethenny Frankel, ya'll are all Busy Black Women!

In compiling these facts to tweet, I have learned a lot about the women I chose to profile.  It is always interesting to learn how old some celebrity really is (if the entries on Wikipedia are to be believed), and it is also great to learn that many of the women I admire have really accomplished wonderful things.  It gives me hope that for all of my efforts, one day someone in the generations that follow will research my life and be inspired.

Le sigh...(freeze frame smile of hopeful pride)

Back to School/Work/Reality

Folks, July is over.  And that means summer is just about gone too.

According to the calendar, one might be tempted to think that we have a full six weeks of leisurely living left, but no!  As soon as those back-to-school sale signs appeared (no less than a day or so after July 4th), it has been clear that the retailers are ready to plunge us headfirst towards Christmas.  As you know, back-to-school sales beget Halloween sales which beget Christmas trees and before you know it, you are complaining about the cold and making New Years Resolutions again. 

The good thing about this past July was that it took forever to end.  But that could also be considered a bad thing since this was the absolute hottest summer I have ever endured.  And just so that you know that declaration is coming from a woman who lived in New Orleans for three years and who spent her freshman year living on the third floor of a non air-conditioned dorm with a window that faced the sun, so that is saying a LOT!  This past month there were days that I stepped outside just to water my tomatoes and literally, walked out into a sauna.

I spent a great deal of time lamenting my overall lack of productivity because idleness is a really scary thing for me.   Then I came to the magical realization today that I was not wasting time, I was relaxing...(ok, not really) but for the first time in a long time, I actually had time off to enjoy.

Thank goodness I didn't totally blow it--I enjoyed the month of July more than I thought.  I watched a lot of movies.  I got a lot of writing done and spent a lot of time with the Baby Niece.  I've had a little time to assess some of my shortcomings in order to make some adjustments for the Fall.  I've had time to plan a few projects.  I've been spending quality time with my family.  I threw out some of the clutter that has been overwhelming me.  I planted tomatoes and peppers again.  I got up and went to church a few Sundays without having any particular reason for doing so.  Before the summer ends, I will make it back up to NYC to spend time with the Tween, Teen and Adult Nieces along with the Nephews.  I will get back into some kind of yoga class.  And in a few days, I will help the husband celebrate another birthday. 

All of this is to say that the BBW is thankful.  Dear Lord, thank you for this past month of downtime.  Yes, I blew off a lot of stuff and will have to spend the bulk of August trying to make up for that, but I think that was simply a part of the grand design.  Perhaps heatwaves are just like blizzards in that you are telling us to stay still because too much movement is life-threatening.

Now I am about to do something completely uncharacteristic--I am shutting down the computer for the night.

Late Night Fried Chicken: Lesser Royal Weddings and Other Snacks

So apparently this past weekend, another royal wedding took place except I did not get word that I needed to rise from my bed at 5am to watch the two-hour long processional.  And then I remembered that I totally missed another royal wedding a couple of weeks ago, so I'm starting to wonder if I am slipping...

Or maybe these royal nuptials involve folks that we clearly could care less about. 

But if you recall, I have a major soft spot for the British royal family.  So the wedding of the Queen's eldest granddaughter and the in-depth coverage of Princess Catherine's recycled outfit is enough for me to indulge in a few late night nibbles with some fancy dipping sauce.  And while we're on the subject of royals, I might as well enjoy a few more nuggets--the royal visits exchanged between the First Family and the Windsors, the visit to Hollywood by the future King and Queen of England, and then the royal wedding of Prince Albert of Monaco.  So if you please, a recap in photos (with a little snarky commentary in my best Geico gecko voice):

The lovely bride, Zara Phillips, and her new husband, Mark Tindall, the bloke with the crooked face.