Misplaced Mississippian, Real Talk, Storytelling

Building Blocks

I come from a long line of brick masons and builders, which is probably why I often feel so unimportant sitting at the keyboard of a tiny laptop.

My mother comes from a small town in south Mississippi; a place where those builders in her family have been active for a long, long time. She told me this past weekend that her grandfather built the school her father attended, her father built the school that she and her siblings attended, and her brother and his son helped build the current high school. Four generations of one family, laying down the building blocks for the future of the town.

They had the blessing of physically laying blocks down. It’s rare, as we often don’t see the non-physical building blocks that we place every single day through our actions. Continue reading “Building Blocks”

Craven On....

The Breakfast Club

There once was a time in which an electric drum set was the only way to rock out. It was an age in which feathered hair could be considered a good look for a tough guy. When fingerless gloves were not just acceptable, but carried some form of respect. It was a magical age, a short-lived one, and is now a sought after bygone era.

It was the 1980’s, and in the 1980’s, John Hughes was the king.

Because why wouldn't he be?
Because why wouldn’t he be?

Continue reading “The Breakfast Club”

HTBAS, The GBROAT, Useless Observation

How to be a Southerner: Know the Weather, vol. 1

Joseph and I have decided it’s time to educate folks on how to be a Southerner.  Here’s a helpful post on how to be just that.

Weather is a fact of life.  When I was in public school, I learned that there were 4 seasons – Summer, Fall, Winter, and Spring.  Living in the South, I’ve learned that what I was taught in public school about the weather* was not true.  In the South, we have 2 seasons – Summer and Winter.  Summer usually lasts for anywhere from 46-50 weeks and winter lasts anywhere from 2-6 weeks.  This is helpful for anyone who is interested in the South to know, because if you come here, you will know you need to pack as if you’re either staying for a few days on the Hoth system or if you’re planning on going directly to the sun.  Whatever your fashion magazine says about Spring or Fall trends is irrelevant, unless you want an entire wardrobe you can wear for all of about 15 minutes.  So keep that in mind.

Continue reading “How to be a Southerner: Know the Weather, vol. 1”

Sportz, Storytelling, This Is What Happens, Useless Observation

My Migraines

This is an unpublished draft from 2011 that I’ve now edited and uploaded. Fun stuff!

Years ago, I discovered something interesting about my body: it hates me.

It wants me to fail. It wants me to never actually be proud of any sort of appearance or accomplishment. It apparently thinks this is funny.

It could be the layer of gut that never fully goes away, no matter how much effort is put into getting in shape. It could be the countless minor allergies I have that are never life threatening, but prevent me from ever feeling what most humans call “healthy”. It could be the fact that my tiny, disproportionate ankles get rolled so frequently that we call them Brankles (broken + ankle, kids).

Or it could be the fact that I get migraines when I over-exert myself. In other words, my head wants to rupture when I actually try to do stuff. Fantastic. You can take your pick as to what stands out, but to me, this is the main example of how my body goes out of my way to keep me humble. Continue reading “My Migraines”