For me it was The Muppet Show. If I didn't see my Muppets, I just wasn't right for the week. LOL
Keep in mind this was before the VCR, so if I wasn't near a TV 10 minutes before show time, I would act a plum fool. Don't mess with My Muppets! LOL
Scooby-Doo was another one of my favs. I loved trying to solve the mysteries.
Our local music store was called SoundTown & in walking distance from our house. I remember when "When Doves Cry" was released & she sent me to buy the 45. Imagine the shock when I saw a purple record! I couldn't wait to play it...like it was gonna sound differently or something. LOL
She had Peaches crates & milk crates of records on top of records. She would always play her new purchases from beginning to end - A-Side & B-Side. There was a lot of good music on the B-sides that never got radio play & unless you (or someone you knew) owned & played the 45 or LP in it's entirety, you would never hear these songs.
I posted my all time fav B-side song yesterday - If I Could Feel That Old Feeling Again by Anita Ward.
What are some of your favorite, never got radio play B-side songs?
My very first W-2 wage paying job was Peer Tutor. In 1986, I just started freshman year in high school & made a whole $3.76 per hour for 1 to maybe 1.5 hours per day, after school. Ahhhh...the good ole days.
That's yours truly in the v-neck, sleeveless sweater & the bling in the ears (in front of the teacher/monitor).
Tell me about your 1st job.
) this past weekend & it got me to thinking, "What if something horrific happened to me & I couldn't be identified via facial recognition or fingerprints??" How would they [or even I, if my memory was lost] figure out who I am/was? 
out 5 years ago & never looked back], my permanent scars came to mind. 
Hmph! Don't answer that or 
. 
As the youngins are graduating, it brings back memories. I dug this up & thought I'd share. The only rule is you have to post a picture directly related to your senior year along with your blog. Enjoy!
}
Tell us about your best & worst Mother's Day.
The Best - My son (about age 5 at the time) brought home a card he made at school. I swear to you that card looked as if it had been stepped on, chewed on & cried on, but he gave it to me as if it were the Hope Diamond. I'm sure the poor card struggled from school on Friday to giving it to me that Sunday. My Mother's Day breakfast consisted of 2 cold hot dogs & a bowl of Trix...oh & some dandelions he picked from the yard (lol). I ate my breakfast it like it came from a 4 star establishment & displayed my dandelions on the etagere because my baby did it all by himself. A day I'll never, ever forget.
The Worst - Mother's Day 1999 - the 1st without my mother. No one to buy a card & gifts for & no one to call. The absolute worst.
I found out there was no Santa when I was about 6 or 7. Even tho I had my own room at my grandparent's home, I always slept in the bed with Muda. {Man I miss those days.}
Muda had this huge bed (for those who have been to my home, it was just like mine). I'm a very wild sleeper & I used to have a tendency to fall out of the bed on occasion. This particular Christmas Eve, I fell out of the bed & when I got up Muda was gone. Now this wasn't unusual because she was a night owl & was always up piddling around. I went to the kitchen 1st because that's where I usually found her, but tonight she wasn't there. I went to Papa's room & he was gone too! {Muda & Papa's separate rooms will be blogged about soon.}
I went back to Muda's room when I heard voices. I realized the voices were coming from the living room. I tiptoed to the living room & there they were! Muda & Papa putting our gifts under the tree! My eyes damn near popped outta my head. I tiptoed back to Muda's room & climbed in bed. I don't think slept a wink after getting a glimpse of what was under that tree for me.
I was so happy the next morning I think I laid in bed just long enough for day to break & off to the living room I went! I was a little mad woman ripping open boxes & ripping off bows.
A few hours later my Mama & Bill show up with these 2 huge hefty bags with the stuff "Santa left at their house" for us. I was in heaven!
I later whispered to my mama that I knew there was no Santa Claus, but she disagreed. I kept telling her I knew the truth & she finally asked me how did I "think" I knew. I told her I saw Muda & Papa putting the gifts under the tree the night before. She made me promise never to tell my sister & I never did.
Now the funny part of this story is that my mother, God rest her soul, was a hateful wench, (her mother's words, not mine). She knew there was no Santa and my granny warned her not to tell my uncle because he still believed. Well my mama, got in a mood and when my uncle was talking about Santa, his loving big sis said, "C'mere boy! (dragging him to my grandmother's closet) Ain't no damn Santa Claus!" Legend has it that my uncle burst into tears & told my granny what happened when she got home & my granny beat the dogsled shit outta my hateful ass mama for ruining her baby boy's Christmas.
1. Did you date someone from your high school? Yes
2. If yes, who (first name only). Darren, Troy, Michael, Ronnie & a few others I know I'm forgetting.
3. Did you marry someone from your high school? No, but I procreated with one.
4. If yes, who? N/A
5. What kind of car did you have in high school? Bi-State (public transpo)
6. What kind of car do you have now? 2003 Chevy Malibu
7. It is a Friday night . . . where are you now? Sleep!
8. It was Friday night . . . where were you then? With my friends at the mall.
9. What kind of job did you have in high school? After school peer-tutor
10. What kind of job do you do now? HR
11. Were you a party animal? Every chance I got.
12. Were you considered a flirt? Of the worst kind.
13. Were you in band, orchestra, or choir? I was in the choir & even performed a few times.
14. Were you a nerd? Yep...the smart, likable & cute kind.
15. Did you get suspended or expelled? I'm I did once or twice.
16. Can you sing your school’s fight song? I could 18 years ago.
17. Who was your favorite teacher? Mr. Bright - taught me Algebra as a freshman & Trigonometry as a senior.
18. Where did you sit during lunch? Usually with my girls.
19. What was your school's full name? Vashon Senior High
20. When did you graduate (or leave)? June 1, 1990
21. What was your school mascot? Wolverine
22. If you could, would you go back and do it again? Yep! Those were a few of the best years of my life.
23. Did you go to your Prom? Yes
24. Do you still talk to the person you went to Prom with? Yep. He's just my baby's daddy.
25. Are you planning on going to your next reunion? I missed the 10-year due to travel, but hope to make the 20-year.
26. Do you still talk to people from school? Yep,thanks to ning.com.
27. What were your high school colors? Royal Blue & White
28. Name all the groups or areas where you had a picture in your senior year book: National Honor Society, School Paper, Math Team & Peer Tutors
I've always been one to speak my mind & have many memories of the split and busted lips I suffered during my teen years to prove it. Those close to me know I'm not one to call shit Shinola (lawd I just dated myself didn't I?), nor will you piss on my head & tell me it raining. It's just not happening. I do not sugarcoat....maybe to a fault.
I do make an honest effort not to be rude, crude or hurtful, but sometimes the truth hurts. If you ask me, I will be honest. My close friends and family have learned to tell me first if they just want an ear. In turn, I've learned to keep my comments to myself.
Muda, my granny, my rock was the person who said the most hurtful thing ever said to me. One day she was combing my hair (which was no easy task) and she said and I quote, "Your mother had to go & marry the blackest man she could find." *sigh* Here I am, not more than 8 or 9 years old wondering what the hell was wrong with my daddy. I knew she loved my daddy & couldn't figure out why she would say such a thing about him. Even tho my Grandfather & Step-Grandfather were two of the biggest, blackest men I'd even seen in my life, my granny was still color-struck.
After that day, I developed terrible complex about my skin-tone & for those who have seen my kin, they can tell you why. When Papa noticed he said, "Don't worry Pumpkin, the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice." It was the 1st time I heard that & really didn't understand what it meant.
Well, I've since gotten over it worrying about something I cannot control & that really shouldn't have bothered me to start with.
I have to admit, I can't help but laugh just a little when my family has to go lay in the sun to get a little color. (Nothing against my light-skinned sisters & brothers, cause I love y'all too.)
I never got the chance to tell my granny that she really did hurt my feelings, and that I am happy with the skin I'm in....and so are all of my loyal fans! *wink*
I was your typical, or maybe not so typical, fast ass, boy crazy, teen-aged girl. Even tho I had my mother & my grandparents, I was missing a very vital piece of me – my father. Muda always said, things would’ve been different if my daddy hadn’t died.
My problems started 22 years ago today. I lost my virginity way too young & too a man who could’ve cared less about me.
One hot summer’s night, I was hanging out with my cousin, her boyfriend & his friend (let’s call him John). We had been hanging out for a few weeks & always had fun. One night after going to see “The Mack” at the $1 Movie & hanging out on the St. Louis Riverfront listening to music, talking shit & drinking (yeah, I drank California Coolers when I was a teen), we went back to John’s house. His mom worked graveyard. The apartment was empty. My cousin & her boyfriend disappeared into a back room.
We sat on the couch for a little while & talked, then John grabbed my hand & we ended up in his bedroom. We kissed a lil, well, maybe a lot. He touched me in places I’d never been touched before & I liked it. He undid my halter-top (I was 135 lbs, soaking wet back in the day) and started to do things to my breasts that made me feel like lighting was flowing thru my body. He asked if I was a virgin & I shyly answered, “Yes.” He kissed me ever so gently & proceeded to remove my clothing. The next thing I knew I was looking at his naked body, penis hard as a rock. I think I was staring because he asked if I was scared, I replied, “Kinda.”
Whitney Houston's "Good Love" was playing on the Quiet Storm. He laid down next to me. I knew it was wrong. Part of me wanted to say, “Stop!” The other part of me really wanted to know what the hype was all about & that part gave in. Before I knew it he was inside of me. It hurt, but wasn’t unbearable. He continued to kiss me & stroke my hair. I just laid there, as I had no idea of what was happening, but he seemed to be happy. A few moments later, he held me really tight & let out this groan, a groan that I had never heard before. Still, I had no idea what had just happened. He got up, kissed me on the forehead, put on his shorts & left the room. Still I laid there, in a daze.
He came back to the room with some towels & handed me his bathrobe. I went to the bathroom only to find my cousin in there, reapplying her makeup. I closed the door & slid down to the floor. She asked, “What’s wrong?” I replied, “I did it.” “Did what?” she asked. “It!” I replied. Ohhhh! She helped me off the floor, we talked a lil bit & she left. I cleaned myself up & put my clothes on.
When I came out of the bathroom they were sitting in the living room waiting for me. We get into the car & the boys drive us home. We laughed, talked & sang along with the music....or a least they did. I was still in a daze & don't recall saying much of anything.
As we drove down the street, I saw my mama & her boyfriend in the park. I ducked! I hoped like hell she didn't see me. We make it home & get out of the car. John walked me to the front door, hugged & kissed me. It was cool since we all knew my mama wasn't there waiting to bust me for breaking curfew.
I talked to John twice, maybe three times since that fateful evening. I even saw him a few times afterwards, but he barely said hi….if that. I was devastated. I give him my virginity & this is how I get treated in return?! I wanted to cry & I did....many times. I eventually got over it.
He died several months later due to a ruptured appendix. I cried when I heard the news & wanted to go to the funeral, but there is no way my mama would’ve let me. I would've had to miss school & she would've wanted to know why I wanted to go & I certainly couldn't have told her.
Oh, I failed to mention, I was only 14 when this happened. At age 13, I started lying about my age & managed to get away with it most of the time. I told John I was 17 & he said he was 18. I didn't find out until after the fact that he was actually 20. As they say, it's all water under the bridge....or at least at this point it is.
Well Plyers, here's my wild game experience:
The year was 1978/79 {I was 6/7.}. The place was Muda's Kitchen. Papa had gone out with his buddies earlier in the day & when he came home he had this metal container covered with some kind of cloth. He dumped the contents of the container into the sink & covered it with the cloth. I asked him what he was doing & he told me to take my lil nosey tail on somewhere. I think "Scat!" was the term he used. {Yeah right!} He also told me to stay away from the sink. Needless to say, I didn't listen to him. As soon as the coast was clear, I tip-toed back into the kitchen to find out what the mystery object was. I pulled back that cloth and OMG!!! I damn near jumped outta my skin! It was a hairless, dead dog {I thought} but it still had eyes & teeth! 
Shortly, thereafter, Papa did trick me into eating something when I didn't know what it was. He told me it was chicken. It tasted a lil different but I ate the piece I had. I later overheard another adult mention how good the rabbit was. WTH?!?! They done killed the Easter Bunny & I ate him! 
Man....I look back on those days and 
These are a few things, I've heard over the years and they tend to stick with me.
"The company you keep determines the trouble you meet." - Muda
"Girl, you aren't the only one in the world to go thru heartbreak. Where do you think all those sad ass songs come from?" - Mama
"Find 'em stupid, keep 'em stupid." - Uncle (...you have to know my uncle)
"Y'all gon' miss me when I'm gone." - Papa
Feel free to share yours.
When I was younger, my hair was a lot longer & a whole hellava lot thicker than it is now (y'all have seen the pics). My mother had good hair, so she never really learned to do my hair. Even when she tried, bless her heart, it was always a disaster. Thank God for Muda!
I spent many Saturday afternoons sitting in front of a hot stove, I'm talking hours upon hours, getting my beady beads fried and I hated it! I couldn't even go out to play. I had to stay inside because Muda didn't want me sweating out my fresh "do" before church on Sunday.
She was a prissy one & it was all about appearances with her. If you weren't "together" you couldn't go with her & nobody was missing Morning Service....nobody but Papa, but that's another blog for another day.
To make matters worse, I'm very, very tender-headed. Muda had to wash & dry my hair in about 8 sections. There was no other way. I cried when she washed. I cried when she dried it & I cried some mo' when she fried it! 
Because of the texture of my hair, I got my 1st relaxer at age 13. Me & Muda couldn't take it no mo'! I guess India.Arie wasn't the only one, huh? Unlike India, I wasn't a source of laughter & it worked in my favor. It made my "do" so much more manageable.
Now I know you natural, stop trying to look like the white man folks are rolling ya eyes & such, but I have to do what's best for me. Some of the natural styles are simply fabulous and look great on most, but right now, they just aren't for me.
I have a lot of history wit' dat dere hot comb. I think I'll keep it....ya know, for sentimental reasons.
May 3, 1972 & that was the question.
Apparently my parents hadn't decided on what to name their 1st born until that fateful day.
Daddy had chosen Jennifer Lynn & wanted to call me Jenni Pooh. Mama disagreed. She didn't like either one & suggested Monica. Daddy was okay with that & still suggested Lynn for my middle name. Mama said no. So here's 9lbs & 1.5 oz little Monica with no middle name.
Mama pondered the middle names of her nieces & chose one that fit, but spelled it differently. {Ya'll know how we do.} Mama was happy & Daddy was too. You see my family has a tendency to recycle and/or combine names to create a middle name. Considering my grandmothers were Dorothy Mae & Lillie Mae, I'm just damn glad I'm not Monica Mae. *gag*
Papa even threw in his nickel's worth and decided to nickname me Pumpkin because of my smile...imagine that. {I miss that old dude.} I hear he raised quite a ruckus with nurses because they would only let him see me from behind the glass. In the end, Papa got what he wanted.
Now of course, I have to ask - do you know how your name came about? I'm all ears!
As most of you know, I'm knocking on 36's door as we speak. Our course I'm thinking about a whole host of things, & this blog came to mind.
I wanna do over! (That's me with those long ass legs at age 4. The baby is 1 year old & the little boy was 6 or 7.)
Remember how we used to yell that out {as children} when things didn't go our way?
I wanna go to sleep at night without a care in the world.
My senior prom was a night I'll never forget. I had a blast. My date was the infamous baby daddy.
I had a part-time clerical job during my senior year. I was determined to get the dress and accessories I wanted. Mind you they are in my basement somewhere. I'm sure they're probably dry-rotted by now.
I still have the receipt from that dress. It was on layaway for a month. When I made my last payment, all I had left was bus fare home.
I didn't let anyone see it before that day. I went and got my hair done, came home & got dressed. My mother was just a boo-hooing when I came down the stairs. My then toddler son, goes, "Ooooooooo mama!" He ran towards me & my mother snatched him back really quick. She shook her finger at him & said, "Don't you mess up my baby's dress!"
His dad came to pick me up & it started raining! I was so upset but determined not to let it get the best of me. We made our obligatory rounds & headed to the downtown Sheraton.
The food sucked, but the music was jamming! We all had a fabulous time.
The whole hotel room afterwards thing was moot as far as I was concerned. I already had a baby! I went home, snuggled up with my bambino & called it a night.
Back in the day, Six Flags the day after prom was customary. The donor's car broke down that morning so we didn't go.
Later on that day (Mother's Day), one of my classmates was gunned down & killed as she stood on her front porch. She was leaving the house & headed for Six Flags. {RIP Chelle} That was a Mother's Day I'll never forget.
The few weeks we had left as high school seniors were not very happy ones, but we did what we could to make the best of it.
Miss Lucy had a steam boat
The steamboat had a bell,
Miss Lucy went to heaven and the
Steamboat went to...
Hello operator
Please give me number nine
And if you disconnect me
I will chop off your...
Behind the 'fridgerator
There was a piece of glass
Miss Lucy sat upon it
And she cut her big fat...
Ask me no more questions
I'll tell you no more lies
The boys are in the bathroom
Pulling down their...
Flies are in the meadow
The bees are in the park
Miss Lucy and her boyfriend
Are kissing in the...
Dark is like a movie
A movie's like a show
A show is like a tv set
And that is all I know.
********************************************************
Miss Mary Mack, Mack, Mack
all dressed in black, black, black.
Silver buttons, buttons, buttons
down her back, back, back
She asked her mother, mother, mother
for fifty cents, cents, cents
to see the elephant, elephant, elephant
jump the fence, fence, fence.
He jumped so high, high, high
he touched the sky, sky, sky.
And he never came back, back, back
till the fourth of July.
Ahhhhh....the gold old days. Feel free to add to the list.
The summer of '84 was one I'll never forget. I was 12 and for as long as I could remember, I spent every weekend & summer at my grandparent's house.
One morning I woke up with a stomach ache. I wasn't hungry & no, I didn't have gas. I didn't know what was wrong with me, I just knew something wasn't right.
Later on in the day, I felt something coming from me, so I went to check it out. Low & behold there's blood in my panties & I didn't know why. I panicked! I cleaned myself up, wadded the washcloth & my panties up, found a bag & took them straight to the dumpster in the alley. I sat on the back porch & cried. Why the heck did you cry, you ask? Well, about one week earlier, I had my very 1st french kiss from a boy down the street & I thought the blood in my panties was a result. I was so afraid to tell anyone since I knew what the consequences of my grandparents finding out about me & that boy would be! Needless to say, I kept my "shame" to myself.
Just about a month later, it happened again!! Hold up! I haven't been anywhere near any boys since the last time this crap happened....what gives?!
I thought Muda would become suspicious when the toilet paper & paper towels started disappearing faster than usual, but she never said anything more than, "You all better stop wasting my paper products!"
Call me crazy but for some reason, I thought this madness that was happening to me would stop.
It's mid-Sept and I was in the 6th grade. It's about another hour before the bell rings & school is out & then I "feel" it again. Dammit! I sat in my seat until the classroom had cleared and when I stood up, white pants ruined, Mrs. Hill (God love her) said, "Come with me." She had a closet full of sanitary products. Apparently this crap happens to 6th grade girls all the time. She explained what was happening to me as I changed into my gym clothes for the walk home. I was embarrassed but relieved to know that I hadn't done anything wrong.
I made my way home & when my mom asked what happened at school today, I just pulled my ruined white jeans out of my book bag & handed them to her. She said, "Oh Lord." Then she called Muda. I could hear Muda say, "You better get her some "napkins" because she's too young for those damn Tampax you use". Now I'm thinking, "What the hell is a napkin & why do I need them?! I need pads!" Me & mom went to the store. She went down the aisle of sanitary products & I shamefully lurked away from her. I didn't want anyone seeing me buying pads!
Well that was over 20 years ago & after becoming a teen mother, I was more than happy to go down "that aisle" in the store.
I used my experience to warn my friends with daughters to talk to them about their pending menstrual cycles sooner that later!
My God-daughter, started at 10, but her mom talked to her when she was about 9, so she knew what to expect.
Now I just wanna know why in the sam hell my mother & grandmother didn't have a box of pads in the house?!
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