By Original Diva, on December 10th, 2012%
I am an avid fan of Murder She Wrote. So avid that I’ve seen every single episode. Did anyone else notice that in once episode Genie Francis played her niece and a season later she played Grady’s fiancee? Aside from solving mysteries, Jessica is known for spending her post-Frank years writing mysteries and traveling the country visiting her many nieces and nephews. Many = a dozen. There were a lot of episodes where people asked her if she had any children and she always replied that she and Frank were never blessed with any but the nieces and nephews made up for it.
Maybe it’s the upcoming birthday or maybe it’s the pregnancy announcement from my niece but lately I’ve been considering the fact that maybe I’ll end up leading a Jessica Fletcher life….no kids…just nieces and nephews.
By Original Diva, on November 18th, 2012%
I had a little get together at my place last night to celebrate accomplishing some of my running goals for the year. Two of my cousins and their spouses…that was it. We had a great time telling family stories and trying new wines. The food was extra yummy too. I made a Spanish dish, Italian, and seafood.
During the party though I missed my husband. He would have made a really good addition to the group.
We’ve been separated for a year now and I still miss him so much. This December 24th will be our 5 year anniversary and I typically wouldn’t say this out loud but I still get the same butterflies as I did when we kissed for the first time.
Sometimes I consider giving up…letting go…moving on. I sometimes think to get the life I want with a family I will have to let go. And then there are times when I believe that
What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder.
The minister who married us said that during the ceremony and I want to believe in it.
By Original Diva, on August 30th, 2012%
Dear Diary,
I miss my husband so much. The other day I wanted to call him up and ask his opinion about stem cell research because those are the types of conversations we would have in the past.
But it’s not what we talk about now. These days he talks about divorce and I…well I tell him that I still believe it can work but we’re not agreeing with the other right now.
I miss the good times. Matter of fact, I can’t get that Jackson 5 song out of my head. I’m planning a family reunion for next year and in my wildest dreams we’d be a family. Maybe even with a little person on the way. Hence the reason it’s just a dream.
Oh well….maybe I’ll find someone to discuss stem cell research with. But I know it won’t be the same as discussing it with him.
Bye Diary.
By Original Diva, on May 12th, 2012%
This Mother’s Day, I’m working with Clever Girls in support of Macy’s Heart of Haiti to shine a light on the “trade, not aid” program, which provides sustainable income to Haitian artisans struggling to rebuild their lives and support their families after the 2010 earthquake.
I’m on only child on both sides…..and all my life I was okay with that. I never begged for a little anything at Christmas time…not even another gold fish (after I killed the first three). Life was okay in my spoiled princess world. I’ve had stepbrothers and I currently have 2. I have 2 brother in laws and 2 sister in laws but in my family it’s still just me. When I pledged Sigma Gamma Rho I was probably one of the few women whose reasons did not include sisterhood. I had always been okay alone. My goals were all about service to my community. I met ALL of my core friends in 2003. Let me explain. ALL of my core friends are my sorors. We met in a sorority related chatroom and for the 4th of July weekend I organized a meetup in Memphis for us. Some people couldn’t make it but that was the weekend that spurred deep connections outside of the internet. That was the weekend where phone numbers were exchanged and true friendships deepened.
But everyone couldn’t make it. TJ was one of those people. I can tell you that I have known TJ since 2003 but we didn’t become friends until 2005 (I think). The weekend of my MBA graduation I came home from work and found the most delicious pears on my doorstep and yellow roses (ee-yiip) waiting on my doorstep…from TJ. I remember thinking how special that was because I’d never received flowers before and I didn’t think we were close enough for her to even think about me.
That was 7 years ago and when I tell you that TJ is now the holder of the secrets to the kingdom of Diva….I mean it!
She is my soror
my friend
my sister
my PERSON
I know that I talk about her alot on my blog and I probably always will because she’s the rock that holds me steady in life….she’s my sister. We have disagreed on most political issues in life and she claims that I am wild and free enough to name my future daughter Sunrise while I swear my niece and nephews are socially oppressed like the Sound of Music kids but we have only stopped speaking once and I was so miserable about it I cried on my husband’s shoulder until she forgave me. In my head I have a vested interest in her kids. In her head they are my niece and nephews. In my head, Nat is my favorite (he thinks so too though). And yes I think they are Sound of Music oppressed. But I’d be willing to bet my life that there is not another mother I could learn as much from as my sister. I don’t have any children and am slowly accepting that my eternal role will be greatest aunt in the world. Some of the greatest things I’ve learned about being an aunt have come from watching TJ be a mother. She is raising her children with a very strong set of values and standards in life which is why I know that she will truly appreciate the Heart of Haiti necklace that I sent her for her birthday (I really hope she gets the mail before reading this). I love you TJ. Happy Birthday and Happy Mother’s Day (working on some play clothes for the kids now….except my windows didn’t come with curtains LOL)
What is Macy’s Heart of Haiti? Heart of Haiti is a “Trade, Not Aid” initiative launched by artist and social entrepreneur, Willa Shalit, The Clinton Bush HaitiFund and Macy’s. Already, Heart of Haiti has led to employment of 750 artists in Haiti, providing financial benefits for an estimated 8,500 people in the country.
Each item is a one-of-a-kind design and handmade by a Haitian master artisan from raw materials such as recycled oil drums, wrought iron, papier-mâché and stone. The collection features more than 40 home decor items including quilts, metalwork, ceramics, jewelry and paintings and is made almost entirely from recycled and sustainable items such as old cement bags, cardboard, oil drums and local gommier wood.
Heart of Haiti products are available online at Macy’s.com.
Thank you to Macy’s Heart of Haiti for sponsoring my participation in this “Share Your Heart” promotion. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions expressed here are my own.
By Original Diva, on April 12th, 2012%
I haven’t done one of Mama Kat’s writing workshops in a while but when I saw this week’s list one of them jumped out at me as extremely cool!
Ask a sibling or close friend to guest post on your blog for a day. Have them share a story about you that we might not have heard before.
So I turned to the closest friend I have, TJ. She’s so sweet sometimes.
My sister, Diva (in Demand).
At first glance, Diva (in Demand) often appears to be the Clark Kent persona with Superman lurking underneath. People often take her diminutive stature and refined manners as an opportunity to get things twisted, which results in a live demonstration of what has been called “a pit bull in a chihuahua’s body”.
Diva and I are about as different as night and day. She grew up in the midst of divorce, I come from a two-parent home. For most of the time that I’ve known her, she has been single. I’ve been married almost two decades. She’s a free-spirit natural hair diva and I reserve the right to wear my hair in whatever style I feel the need, relaxer included. My political views run moderate to conservative and hers run liberal to more liberal. Unless we’re talking about gun control (Is that a side effect of being from Texas?). We’ve had some interesting discussions and intense debates, but I’ve never left a conversation not at least considering the other side of an issue because of what she had to say about it.
I’ve known Diva for over eight years. Through MBA completion, trips to Memphis, three International Grand Basilei, (her) marriage, the birth of two (of my) children, a radio show, small town Oregon, Chicago, my father’s cancer, and her father’s cancer. Diva is not perfect, but she is fabulous, generous, considerate and genuine – whether she is accepting national awards and managing multi-million dollar budgets or rebuilding her life after two years of living without a house key.
If TJ wasn’t so incognito I’d post a picture of the two of us, but since she is…..here’s just a picture of our time in the Pacific Northwest together.
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