It's a tricky one, Mother's Day. It means well. It started out well and then, well, it met Capitalism and kind of lost it's way. In recent years some brave voices have quietly reminded us that all this in-your-face motherly fantasy, every May, does not bring unmitigated joy to all. I confess to being sometimes …
Author: bnzoot
(Mostly) harmless, middle-aged California girl transplanted and thriving in the South. Enjoys pondering Life, the Universe and Everything. Always interested and inspired by the world around me, even when I shake my head wondering, What is God THINKING?
Most of my working life was spent in Corporate America as a Secretary, then a Contract Manager. I took some time to go back to school, until circumstances.... led me to Education, which was inspiring and horrifying in equal measure.
I'm a cock-eyed optimist with a dark side and here is where I let loose of some thoughts appropriate for public consumption. Except for the times I'm completely inappropriate.
Lent in the Wilderness
It's been a wilderness-y Lent. For the first time in maybe twenty years I am not affiliated with a parish and thus not busy with Wednesday Lenten Soup Suppers, programs, or public outreach projects, all the things that an Episcopal parish does during Lent, all the preparations I would normally be knee deep in heading …
Helicopter-Crash Parenting
Praise the Lord for Caller ID and Voice Mail, which now spares us from the calls which eat our brains. As soon as I heard about the college admissions scandal, I remembered this: "Oh God, it's her again, isn't it?" "Yep. I'm not answering her anymore. I can't help her. You can't help her. No …
Youthful Stupidity is No Longer Consequence-Free
If we mixed all the words of all the languages together, including Whale song, there would still not be enough words to express my unadulterated gratitude that all of my Youthful Stupidity was conducted well before Social Media was all-pervasive. And yet I know there exists a deeply unflattering photo of me, somewhere, held by …
Continue reading Youthful Stupidity is No Longer Consequence-Free
Pieces of Racism, Falling Into Place
So many years ago I don't like to admit, I was a Bank Teller. It was so long ago that I did not have a computer at my station, nor a bill counter; I counted the money by hand, and kept track of cash via two carbon pads called Debits and Credits. This was just …
A Wokish White Woman’s take on Green Book
Somewhere I heard that the stage is where an actor shines, while in film it's the director who tells the story. It's been a useful piece of information when I find favorite actors in crap projects - Michael Caine, I'm lookin' at you - but Green Book is not a crap project. It simply left …
An Election Day Prayer
It's a day for Prayers. I'm praying. It is both fair and correct to say, just about everyone I know is praying today. Also, I would put money on each of us having specific desired outcomes of our prayers, because people are stupid that way, me most of all. Some, of course, are praying for …
Where are all of those Adults in the Room?
Funny story: in the run-up to our wedding, about three of the combined five adult children along with some of their children, were all over at the house one evening. It was busy, chaotic, and everyone was more than a little distracted. There may have been some merry-making in the form of cocktails. But with …
Unsuited for the Job
Brett Kavanaugh had an opportunity last Friday, September 28, 2018: he had an opportunity to show the United States, and particularly American Women, that he was a suitable choice for a seat on the highest court in the country. Brett Kavanaugh blew it, proving only how deeply unsuited for the job he is. Now, this …
#MeToo, Part II
Perhaps it's my age showing: at the outset of #MeToo I surely did have one large, life-defining #MeToo moment to share, but the other day another episode popped into my head completely unbidden, just Pop! there, in the middle of an only semi-related conversation. I wonder of my middle-aged sisters, those of us raised amid …
Southern Fried Californian 